Total Pro Sports
Longtime ESPN reporter Michele Steele, who has worked for the Worldwide Leader in Sports for 14 years, has announced her pending departure in a stunning development.
In a lengthy X/Twitter post, Michele Steele announced that she is leaving the network on Aug. 1. Steele started the post with “I’m turning the page,” an indicator that she decided to leave.
A graduate of the University of Illinois and Columbia University, Steele didn’t immediately reveal the next chapter in her post-ESPN endeavors. Her full statement on X can be read below:
I'm turning the page…
After a 14-year journey at ESPN, spanning assignments in Bristol, Boston, and Chicago, this chapter as a bureau reporter concludes on Aug. 1.
My Day 1 assignment in the Boston bureau was the day Aaron Hernandez was arrested – fulfilling my dad’s… pic.twitter.com/VHx00UF2f8
— Michele Steele (@MicheleSteele) July 17, 2025
Michele Steele joined ESPN in 2011 after a stint at Bloomberg Television, where she made history as their first full-time sports reporter. She appeared on popular ESPN programs such as “NFL Live,” “Outside the Lines” and “SportsCenter.”
Steele covered the infamous murder trial of former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez. In 2013, he was arrested and charged with the murder of former semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd, who was dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancée.
Hernandez was found guilty of Lloyd’s murder in 2015 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In Apr. 2017 Hernandez was found dead in his jail cell, and officials ruled it a suicide.
Despite being the Worldwide Leader in Sports, ESPN has seen a stunningly long list of marquee talents leave the network over the last two years. It started in 2023, when the company conducted a long series of employee cuts.
That list included Suzy Kolber, Jeff Van Gundy, Max Kellerman, Steve Young, Keyshawn Johnson, Jalen Rose, Matt Hasselbeck and Zach Lowe. In another surprise development, former Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III was let go from his role as an analyst after the network hired Jason Kelce for “Monday Night Countdown.”
Also Read: REPORT: Popular ESPN Analyst Is “Furious” After Getting Robbed By Charles Barkley
