NBC's Football Night in America is something like too much of a good thing. The network seems intent on stuffing the Sunday night broadcast with everything but the kitchen sink. When Tiki Barber retired from the New York Giants, he joined their broadcast. Same thing with Jerome Bettis of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Then Keith Olbermann, a sports guy before becoming the host of MSNBC's Countdown, was inserted into the show. And that was on top of the three mainstays Bob Costas, Cris Collinsworth and Peter King.
Now, you can add one more star to the constellation. Dan Patrick is joining Football Night in America. Patrick, formerly the main man at ESPN -- and Keith's longtime partner on Sports Center as well as Dan's radio show -- will be paired up with Olbermann again and will be slotted in as pre-game show's co-host.
There's no question that Patrick will be an asset. His 18 years at ESPN proved that, and I admired his maverick spirit when he bolted the comforts of Bristol, Connecticut and set up a new deal with his radio show.
The most interesting thing about the move to NBC will be not whether he hits it off with Keith in their sequences; they will. They compliment each other. Think of them like Newman and Redford, only they're not jumping into a river gorge like Butch and Sundance.
The question is how does Costas and Patrick blend, who takes the lead, how are all the egos balanced out. Accordingly, Costas is being called host, but Olbermann, Patrick and Collinsworth will be called co-hosts.
In another football story, that Showtime incarnation of Inside the NFL -- formerly on HBO -- will be manned by CBS sports talent as we expected. James Brown and Phil Simms will co-host the show with -- wait for it -- Cris Collinsworth! Yes, the same Cris from NBC. This isn't such a surprise; Collinsworth was on the HBO show.
The curious omission here, thus far, is Dan Marino. I thought for sure CBS would want him on the Showtime show.
TV Squad previews NBC's new shows (part 1)
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TV Squad previews CBS's new shows
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-07-2008 @ 11:58PM
Picviewer said...
Now if they just dump Costas, Collinsworth and throw anything at the wall to stick for a story King the show would be worth watching.
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7-08-2008 @ 3:50AM
Ryan said...
I like Costas, but Cris Collinsworth has to go. His football analysis is good, but everything else is awful.
And Peter King talks like an expert, but his prognostication is always way off the mark.
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7-08-2008 @ 6:41AM
Jimmy said...
Nice to see I am not the only one who despises Collinsworth! As long as he is on the broadcast, it will suck to some degree, regardless of who is on it with him.
By the way, will Patrick and Olbermann "compliment" each other or "complement" each other? They have such a good rapport, I can see it going either way. ;)
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7-08-2008 @ 10:15AM
Alvaro said...
I like Cris Collinsworth alot, I think hes the best analyst out there. They should get rid of costas, tiki and bettis.
And dont bring Marino to inside the NFL he is not good at all.
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9-07-2008 @ 7:24PM
Dave said...
I turn the channel when Olbermann comes on – can’t stand the idiot. Will not watch the show at all if he is given more then 30 seconds.
Opps - he is back - Thank goodness the OT is on FOX!
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9-08-2008 @ 1:11PM
gordon said...
Olberman and Patrick were once great....then Olberman got greedy, failed, and wound up on the left side of wrong! He will never be the same again and he can only blame himself.......he and Costas need to ride off into the sunset.
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9-14-2008 @ 8:18PM
G7 said...
Ive tried to like this program, but the commentary is terrible - from costas all the way down to tiki. olberman & tiki are just horrible and need to be fired. Hell bring The Donald into fire them! collinsworth should focus on one show so, he could do @ least one job good. The bus should stick to commercials for chunky soup or something. This is a wrap- this cast was put together and has failed. The people have spoken- and its clear cut, a cast revision is in immediate order!!!!!!!!
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9-14-2008 @ 9:44PM
brian bailey said...
NBC should replace Olberman and Costas with Patrick! They each make the show unwatchable in their own way. They could even ditch Collinsworth who at least has his career as a player to give him legitimacy. What do Olberman and Costas have? Biased political commentating and huge egos? Give me Patrick, Bettis, and Barber and I'll watch foe more than five seconds before I turn the channel!
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9-21-2008 @ 8:11PM
kirk clark said...
Get rid ofKEITH OLBERMANN he is a big mouth JERK. There are so many talented people out in the world of sports to pick from, but yet you choose this going no where loser. More is not better Bob, Chris and Dan would be a good team. This could be a great show without loud mouth.
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