Kornacki to make Sunday Night Football debut

Don’t tell Steve Kornacki to stick to sports, but don’t tell him to avoid them either.

The NBC News and MSNBC national political correspondent will take a step out of his usual role of breaking down competitive elections Sunday to break down the landscape as the NFL moves into its playoffs.

“I’ve been a fan of the game since I was kid and SNF has been must-see TV for me since it started back in ’06,” the former New Jersey politics reporter said. “Truly a thrill to get this chance, especially as the season reaches its most exciting point. I spent the last year using the Big Board to map out all of the various roads to 270 and I can’t wait to put it to use breaking down all of the paths to the playoffs.”

Kornacki will explain the state of the race to secure playoff spots before Sunday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos. He’ll make another appearance at half time.

“Steve captivated millions of viewers during election season and we’re excited that this Sunday he will turn his focus to playoff season,” NBC Sports executive producer Sam Flood said. “As we push to the playoffs, who better to spot the trends, make the call about division and conference races, and identify the toss-up games that can flip the standings than the man in the khakis?”

Full disclosure: Reporter Nikita Biryukov worked as a production intern at MSNBC Live with Steve Kornacki during the 2016 general election, and then as a digital reporting intern at NBC News in 2017.