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Since she replaced Meredith Viera as co-host of the Today Show last June, Ann Curry hasn't exactly impressed. "Hopeless," a source close to NBC executives said to describe her co-hosting abilities. "Atrocious," said another. "Strained."

And those are some of the kinder ones. But it's become a foregone conclusion amongst network insiders who have been watching the Today Show's inner-circle implode that once NBC gives Matt Lauer his presumed mega-deal, Ann is a good as gone. And it might happen even sooner than that.

And, although it's not directly stated in the New York magazine piece about Laurer, this passage relays the grim prognosis for Curry a lot more gently than it could have:

Lauer's worth only increased when Meredith Vieira left and handed the co-anchor chair to Ann Curry, who in the eyes of many television-news executives has experienced a rocky transition to her new role.

The subtext of that "rocky" transition, according to sources, is that Matt Lauer just "absolutely hates her" as a co-host and is fed up with watching Curry turn what was once NBC's most charismatic and engaging program into a joyless slog.

"Everybody knows she's gone," said one source. "Everybody knows she's gone," said another. "Everybody knows she's gone," said another.

But, if Curry can keep her damaged ego in check, there is also talk of repositioning her at NBC News as some sort of special foreign corespondent so she can get back to doing the more serious journalism she covets—and to keep her far, far away from most of the people she's annoyed during her Today Show stint.

The rumored frontrunner to replace Curry as Lauer's sunshine sidekick is Savannah Guthrie.