Leaving ESPN? Tom Jackson Joins Colin Cowherd, Skip Bayless, & Bill Simmons As Latest To Exit Sports Media Giant

Is long-time NFL Countdown co-host Tom Jackson leaving ESPN? According to multiple reports, he is, and will become part of an ever-growing list of TV personalities that include Colin Cowherd, Skip Bayless, and Bill Simmons, to hightail it out from the “Worldwide Leader In Sports.”

The Tom Jackson report first surfaced courtesy of the New York Daily News early Tuesday morning where sources claimed Jackson was mulling over the idea of leaving ESPN.

“He’s still weighing his options,” an NFL TV source said. “This will be Tommy’s call. It’s up to him. Tommy’s driving the train on this one. The situation is fluid.”

Soon after, Pro Football Talk all but confirmed that the initial report was true and Jackson was headed elsewhere.

“The report from Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News that Tom Jackson will leave ESPN provided some wiggle room for the veteran analyst to return to Sunday NFL Countdown for what would be his 30th season. Multiple industry sources tell PFT that the decision has been made: Jackson won’t be coming back.”

Both the NY Daily News and PFT cited the network’s decision to retain Trent Dilfer’s services and add him to NFL Sunday Countdown as the reason Jackson may be on the outs. They also mentioned that Chris Berman, whom Jackson has been partners with for almost 30 years at ESPN, will soon be retiring when his contract ends at the end of next season. This could also be the driving force behind Jackson’s motives for leaving ESPN, thought nothing was confirmed.

Regardless, this has been quite the year of upheaval at ESPN. In addition to sacking Chris Carter, Keyshawn Johnson, and Mike Ditka, the sports juggernaut saw high-profile personalities Colin Cowherd and Skip Bayless depart the network for FS1. Bill Simmons, another high-priced, notable name was let go from the network and has since moved to HBO.

Cowherd, named one of the “Top 10 Most Powerful Voices In Sports,” according to Hollywood Reporter in 2015, agreed to a massive new contract with Fox to deliver his daily radio show directly on the network. He also joins Jason Whitlock for a nightly debate show called All Takes Matter, which to date isn’t doing as well as his normal 12-3 p.m. radio show, according to Deadspin.

Bayless meanwhile is getting preparations underway for his own new debate show on FS1 with Shannon Sharpe being rumored as the potential partner for the gig according to Awful Announcing.

“It looks like Skip Bayless has found his next debate partner. There were reports last month that ex-NFL star Shannon Sharpe (who had previously debated Bayless as a guest host on ESPN’s First Take) was a ‘leading candidate’ to join Bayless’ yet-to-be-named show at FS1, and an Awful Announcing source now says that ‘It’ll be Shannon Sharpe with Skip Bayless.'”

Report: Tom Jackson is leaving ESPN https://t.co/qcvdzL5Sh0 pic.twitter.com/2FiAvm5AIc

— Deadspin (@Deadspin) July 26, 2016

His former chair vacated at ESPN, meanwhile, will be filled by none other than Max Kellerman, as reported by The Wrap.

“You will be a villain to some anyway, no matter what you say,” Kellerman said during his first interview being named Stephen A. Smith’s new co-host, alluding to how Bayless was perceived all those years on the show. “The main thing about ‘First Take’ is you can’t worry about that. You can’t try to please everyone — in fact, it’s counter-productive on this show.”

Speaking of villains, Bill Simmons’ new show on HBO has garnered some buzz thanks to an F-bomb-dropping Ben Affleck who appeared inebriated during the debut episode. Otherwise, reviews for his new venture have left critics wanting, though they admit it’s too soon to tell whether it will be a success.

And while Tom Jackson is necessarily in the same league as Cowherd, Bayless, and Simmons, his constant presence on NFL Countdown and NFL Primetime will leave yet another void at ESPN when he leaves.

[Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images]