NFL Hall of Famer Tony Dungy was a regular on NBC for 17 seasons until the network decided to make major changes to its NFL coverage. Dungy, who featured on NBC’s long-running NFL pregame show Football Night in America, was let go by the network earlier this year. The 71-year-old confirmed his departure in March. However, a month earlier, The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand had already reported that NBC was moving toward a “new look show.”
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At the time, Dungy shared on X that he was thankful to NBC for the opportunities he had received over the years. Still, he admitted that the decision was “disappointing.” That was also the feeling of many viewers who had watched Dungy on the pregame show for years. Former ESPN host Sage Steele was among those who wanted to know how Dungy felt about his departure, particularly because of speculation that his public comments about his religious beliefs may have played a role in the decision.
“There are some things that in TV especially, they want you to be careful because they want to attract everybody. They want to have an audience of everyone. They don’t always appreciate you speaking about your faith,” Dungy said in an exclusive interview on the Sage Steele show. “But for me, I’m always going to do that, and I’m going to try to do it in a respectful way. But people are going to know that I’m a Christian. So that part is never going to leave. I am pro-life, and I’m not gonna be ashamed to say that.”
The former NFL head coach was born into a Christian family in Jackson, Michigan, where faith and values were emphasized. Throughout Dungy’s journey in the NFL, first as a player and later as a Super Bowl-winning coach, his faith remained an important part of his identity.
In the 2006 season, when the Indianapolis Colts defeated the Chicago Bears in the Super Bowl, Dungy was asked how it felt to become the first African American head coach to win a Super Bowl. Dungy responded, “Even more important than that to me is the fact that I won as a Christian coach.”
Dungy also shared his beliefs with a nationwide audience during his time as an NBC broadcaster. During the 2017 season, quarterback Nick Foles was expected to start the Super Bowl after Carson Wentz suffered a season-ending injury. At the time, Dungy said that Foles felt as though “God had him on that Philadelphia Eagles team for a reason.”
The former coach’s comments drew criticism from some viewers who believed he was bringing religion into sports coverage. However, Dungy defended his position and suggested that speaking about faith was one of the reasons he believed God had placed him at NBC.
“I feel like that’s one of the reasons God has me at NBC, to be the voice for some of these Christian athletes who want to say those things,” Dungy told CBN News at the time.
However, Dungy’s departure from NBC has not been officially linked to his religious beliefs. The reason given for his exit was that the network wanted to make changes to its pregame lineup and introduce new voices. According to Dungy, he had a feeling that the change was coming.
“I kind of knew that was going to be the case, but then they came to me and Rodney [Harrison] and said they wanted to get a little younger and change the voices, and they appreciated what we had done. But they were moving on and reshaping the show. So it was tough, but that’s has happened before in my football career and happened there. So you just have to think, okay, what does this mean? Where am I going to go? What’s going to be my path now?”
For the 2026 season, Football Night in America features NBC Sports’ Maria Taylor, analysts Jason Garrett and Devin McCourty, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, and former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
As for Dungy, he has kept busy since leaving NBC. He recently announced the launch of his media brand, Road to Sunday. The platform features lifestyle content, in-depth player interviews, and closer interactions between Dungy and NFL fans.