Chris Simms Baffled by NBC NFL Shakeup After Receiving Top Grades

Chris Simms, a seven-year veteran analyst for NBC’s “Football Night in America,” stated he remains confused by his recent exit from the program. Despite consistently receiving high marks and being recognized internally as one of the show’s strongest voices, Simms was informed in April that he would not be returning for the upcoming season.

"It stings I’m not on that show anymore," Simms told Barrett Media’s John Mamola. "I did love doing it, and it kind of felt like it was coming that way. When they tell you you’re awesome on the show and grading higher than anybody every week, then you don’t get to go on the show in the future, you’re a little confused by it."

Simms was part of a significant reshuffling of NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” pregame show lineup. This change also saw the departure of Tony Dungy, who had been with the network for 17 years, and Rodney Harrison, along with Jac Collinsworth. The most notable addition to the broadcast team is former NFL coach Mike Tomlin, who joins Maria Taylor, Jason Garrett, and Devin McCourty. This new quartet will reportedly travel to the site of every “Sunday Night Football” game throughout the season.

Simms continues his work with NBC in other capacities, co-hosting “PFT Live” with Mike Florio, hosting “Unbuttoned” with Connor Rogers, and contributing to the network's college football coverage. While Simms acknowledged Tomlin's talent as a broadcaster, he expressed skepticism about the long-term viability of Tomlin’s role in this specific broadcast context.

"I don’t see him staying long term. He’s really good at it, but I think he’s a great coach," Simms commented. "He’s a great leader of men. Also, the best communicator of any coach I’ve ever been in a locker room with. But the way they’re paying these coaches now, if there’s a situation he likes, I don’t think he’ll turn it down. That’s just a guess."