Since joining ESPN in 2014, Maria Taylor has performed well in a number of roles for the company, but those days appear to be over if she doesn’t get what she wants.
Andrew Marchand of the New York Post is reporting her time might be up at the Worldwide Leader In Sports when he said that the College GameDay and NBA Countdown host reportedly turned down a salary increase from nearly $1 million to roughly $5 million per year during the pandemic last year.
“Taylor, sources said, was hoping to be in the “Stephen A. Smith money” neighborhood, which is near $8 million annually,” Marchand wrote.
Since that initial $5 million offer, ESPN has reduced the salary offerings to Taylor. The current offer is said to be between $2 million and $3 million.
Taylor’s current contract expires around July 20th. Taylor’s current ESPN responsibilities include hosting “NBA Countdown.” The NBA Finals could go until July 22 depending on the length of the series.
Marchand mentions future NFL opportunities could lead to Taylor leaving ESPN:
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“Amazon does like Taylor, according to sources, while NBC could potentially be creative. Both could have NFL hosting opportunities in the future, though nothing is currently available and it is unknown if there are any advanced talks.”
The article describes Taylor’s “ultimate goal” as being “the next Robin Roberts.”
