“Prayers for Lisa, a Penn Stater.” These words, tweeted on October 14, 2024, mirrored the emotions running through the NFL community. Lisa Salters, the beloved Monday Night Football sideline reporter, would be absent from that evening’s Jets-Bills clash at MetLife Stadium.

Joe Buck, the voice of MNF, broke the news to millions of viewers: “Lisa Salters is tending to a personal matter. We look forward to her return. And all of us sending our very best to Lisa and her family.” Salters’ sudden absence, after 13 years as a veteran of the MNF sidelines, left fans worried and wishing for her speedy return.

The journey that brought Salters to Monday nights is as inspiring and remarkable as it gets. At 5 feet 2 inches, she once held the record for the shortest women’s basketball player in Penn State University history. But her small stature seemed to contrast with her larger-than-life journalistic presence.

Before joining ESPN in 2000, Salters got her first taste of high-profile news coverage in the 1990s. She reported on the trials following the Oklahoma City bombing and covered the infamous O. J. Simpson trial for ABC News. These experiences refined her ability to navigate emotionally charged situations—a skill that proved invaluable on NFL sidelines.

During the 2011-12 NFL season, Suzy Kolber, the then-sideline reporter for Monday Night Football, requested ESPN for more in-studio work to stay with her child as much as possible. As a result, ESPN launched NFL Insiders, which opened up a space for a sideline reporter. Enter Vince Doria, Director of News for ESPN. He gave Lisa Salters a call and asked, “Hey, I was wondering if you might be interested in being the sideline reporter for Monday Night Football.”

“I just couldn’t believe this was happening to me!” revealed Salters while narrating that phone call. Making her debut on September 10, 2012, as the Ravens defeated the Bengals 44-13, Lisa Salters celebrated her 10th season as a sideline reporter for Monday Night Football in 2021. And that made her the longest-tenured reported in MNF’s history!

If there was a moment that exemplified Salters’ professionalism and empathy, it was her coverage of Damar Hamlin on January 3, 2023. As the Buffalo Bills’ safety lay motionless on the field, Salters’ reporting threaded a careful needle between journalism and compassion. Her composed yet caring delivery won widespread respect, with one tweet reading, “Lisa Salters proving you can be an incredible journalist while still showing empathy.”

The last time the acclaimed reporter wasn’t on the sidelines was during the 2020-21 NFL season. During the December 21 game between the Steelers and the Bengals, ESPN’s play-by-play announcer Steve Levy addressed Salters’ absence. “Lisa has not been with us live tonight on Monday Night Football. A potential exposure to COVID and just following the protocols have kept her from joining us.” 

While Levy did mention that Salters tested negative, the ESPN veteran didn’t cover Monday Night Football the following week either. At the beginning of the Week 16 game between the Patriots and the Bills, Steve Levy announced, “Lisa Salters isn’t with us tonight due to close contact COVID protocols. She continues to test negative. She’s feeling great. We send our best to you, Lisa, at home.” 

There was a clear reason given the last time Lisa Salters didn’t grace television screens during Monday Night Football. But after Joe Buck’s statement during the Jets-Bills game, her absence got fans worried.

As Laura Rutledge steps up, the NFL community sends love to Lisa Salters

With the 58-year-old tending to a family emergency, attention turned to her replacement for the night. Laura Rutledge, host of NFL Live and SEC Nation, would be trading her studio chair for the sideline mic. At 35 years of age, Rutledge has already carved out her place in sportscasting annals. Nor is she a stranger to the sidelines; she covered the Tampa Bay Rays and San Diego Padres early in her career. But Monday Night Football is a different challenge.

“Sideline reporting is a little bit more specific to the two teams and knowing the two deeps at both sides,” Rutledge related in an August 2024 Forbes interview. “Finding so many storylines that probably will never get in the game. The reality is, you’re prepping for 15 seconds here and there of reports and trying to say things as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

This high-pressure environment is a far cry from the more leisurely pace of studio shows. Rutledge acknowledges the difference, noting, “When it comes to studio shows, it’s much bigger picture, but then also finding ways to be very detail oriented and a unique angle that maybe we haven’t seen everywhere else that week.”

Fans took to social media to express their emotions. One user wrote, “Sending my love to Lisa Salters who will miss tonight’s ESPN ABC Monday Night Football contest between Jets & Bills. Look forward to see her again soon. In meantime, Joe Buck & Troy Aikman have Laura Rutledge filling-in on the sidelines at MetLife Stadium.”

A user subtly called Buck out for his reporting. “Why say anything at all? Just say, ‘Lisa has the night off,'” they wrote. By wording the announcement the way he did, just mentioning a family emergency, Joe Buck made fans think of worst-case scenarios even though he could’ve avoided that. Echoing the sentiment, another commented, “Poorly worded becuz viewers will think the worse. Where was the PR person?”

The news made a user want more details: “So what’s wrong with her?” As mentioned above, the fan couldn’t help but think of the worst, adding, “Concerned.” With no further information on Salters’ absence, we can only wait to know if all is okay. In the meantime, as Rutledge steps into this new role, she brings with her a diverse set of skills and experiences that extend beyond football. In the same Forbes interview, she hinted at broader ambitions: “I would love to get into entertainment if that is in my future. My background’s in entertainment — more like ballet, the dance and arts world and music.”