Booger, Tessitore officially out at MNF
The expected is now official.
ESPN has informed Joe Tessitore and Booger McFarland they are out of the “Monday Night Football” booth, sources confirmed.
In Tessitore and McFarland’s place, The Post reported early last month that Steve Levy on playby-play and analysts Dan Orlovsky, Louis Riddick and/or Brian Griese remain the favorites as the replacements, which The Post first reported early last month.
ESPN has also thought about Kurt Warner and Nate Burleson. ESPN’s lead college team, Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit, remain a possibility.
If Levy becomes the new voice of “Monday Night Football,” it would open up the spot for Tessitore to return to college football.
Tessitore is expected to land back there in some capacity, according to sources, with the possibility of doing a semifinal game, though ESPN already has Fowler and Sean McDonough
for those roles.
Tessitore will continue as ESPN’s lead boxing blow-by-blowerer and on ABC’s show, “Holey Moley.”
Meanwhile, McFarland is expected to have a prominent NFL studio role, according to a source.
On Saturday, The Athletic said on Twitter that Tessitore and McFarland were officially out. The news was expected since
ESPN’s search for their replacements have been extensively reported.
ESPN has had interest in Tony Romo, Petyon Manning, Drew Brees and Al Michaels as potential replacements. None panned out for a variety of reasons.
ESPN had wanted to make a splash, as negotiations with the NFL for the next rights package could soon take place. ESPN, along with ABC and Disney, are hopeful of landing more NFL, including a Super Bowl.
There is a feeling that a better booth could help them in their negotiations, though, sources have said that the NFL is expected to go with the best offer regardless of who the announcers are in the booth.
ESPN has had a revolving door on Monday night since it let Mike Tirico go to NBC. Sean McDonough and Jon Gruden didn’t mesh before Gruden left for the Raiders.
ESPN then replaced McDonough with Tessitore, Jason Witten and for some odd reason put McFarland in what came to be infamously known as the BoogerMobile. Witten took off a year after being ridiculed to return to play for the Cowboys. The BoogerMobile was permanently parked before the 2018 season ended.
That left McFarland alone with Tessitore last year. The duo was ridiculed on social media, which has now led to their official dismissal.