‘(Jim) Nantz Doesn’t Make His Analysts Better,’ ‘Tony Romo Went Backwards’ — Media Expert Points to Troubling Trend With CBS’ Lead Broadcast Booth
CBS play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz recently grabbed headlines when a clip of him trying to peanut-punch a ball out of game analyst J.J. Watt’s hands during the Week 6 game between the Buffalo Bills and Las Vegas Raiders went viral. The playful episode showcased the growing chemistry between Nantz and Watt, who was recently permanently promoted to the post after CBS parted ways with Tony Romo.
Despite the budding chemistry between Nantz and Watt, The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand remains unconvinced about the play-by-play announcer’s ability to get the best out of his analysts.
Andrew Marchand Not Sold on Jim Nantz’s Effect on Lead CBS Analysts
During Thursday’s segment of the “Marchand Sports Media” podcast, the analyst pinpointed the regression of Nantz’s last three partners in the booth as evidence of his claim.
“Romo took the brunt of the criticism. I was one who kinda pointed out that Nantz doesn’t make his analyst better; I think that’s true,” Marchand said. “You look at Phil Simms, went backwards. You look at Tony Romo, went backwards. J.J. Watt, so far, has gone backwards. And so that’s not a great trend.”
Nantz started his career as a sportscaster in the 1980s before becoming a sports anchor calling BYU Cougars and Utah Jazz games for KSL-TV.
He joined CBS Sports in 1985 as a studio host for football and basketball games and as an on-course reporter for the PGA Tour. Nantz first dabbled in NFL games during Sunday Night Football matchups for CBS Radio Sports. For two seasons, he switched to college football play-by-play work and also covered the NCAA Final Four.
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Nantz moved into play-by-play in 1988, but first called a full schedule of NFL games in 1991. He partnered with Phil Simms and became the lead play-by-play announcer for “The NFL on CBS” in 2004, after years of hosting the “NFL Today” pre-game show.
In 2017, Simms was replaced by Tony Romo as Nantz’s lead color commentator. The pair called three Super Bowls together before the four-time Pro Bowler was put on leave for operating while under the influence.
Nantz got another partner when Romo was eventually replaced by three-time Defensive Player of the Year, J.J. Watt, who signed a multi-year deal with CBS to continue in the role.
Nantz remains part of a select club of play-by-play announcers to call both an NCAA Men’s basketball championship game and a Super Bowl, and alongside Brent Musburger, is just one of two people to ever host a Super Bowl, announce an NCAA Men’s basketball championship game, and host coverage of The Masters.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.
