There are occasions when a picture doesn’t tell the whole story.
Like the moment CBS’ Super Bowl cameras caught Travis Kelce screaming in Andy Reid’s face and bumping the Chiefs’ coach, nearly knocking him off his feet, in the second quarter. The stunning shot couldn’t stand alone. It begged for a reaction.
Yet, Tony Romo, CBS No. 1 NFL analyst had none. Instead, Romo was content describing what over millions of viewers could already see.
“After the fumble he [Kelce] comes over to Andy [Reid]. He goes ‘keep me in,’” Romo said. “What happened on the fumble is he wasn’t in [the game]. Noah Gray went in and he had to block.”
What did Romo really think? After all, CBS is paying him $17 million per year for his opinions, right? Did Romo think it was just a heat of the moment reaction by Kelce? Did he have a problem with what was a sideline assault by a superstar on his coach? Was there anything humorous Romo could glean from the ugly incident?
After all, a big — and appealing — part of Romo’s broadcast game is his sense of humor, right?
Romo’s decision to go bland and neither lower the boom on Kelce, or excuse him for getting tangled up in frustration, was major. It left a big hole in CBS Supe production. Romo’s partner, Jim Nantz, rarely gets in the opinion business during a game making Romo’s omission even more glaring. During the halftime report, Norman Julius Esiason took Kelce to task, but his cutting commentary was likely delivered while millions of American toilets were flushing.
BRADY’S TAKE
Meanwhile, in a peek at what could be on the horizon, it’s worth examining how Tom Brady, who joins Fox as its No. 1 NFL analyst next season, handled the Kelce-Reid tango.
Brady recognized he was in no position to chastise Kelce. To do so would have risked being branded a phony long before his booth debut.
“I don’t mind seeing it [Kelce getting in Reid’s face] ‘cause I was a part of a lot of those things,” Brady said Monday on his SiriusXM “Get Up” show. “Emotions are so high. You are definitely not centered. You’re not in a meditative state at that point.”
If Brady made this comment during the game telecast, he would have drawn two different reactions. Some viewers would have ripped him for letting Kelce off the hook. Others would have appreciated his players-eye view of the situation.
Especially when delivered by a former player who was often seen losing his temper on the sidelines.
CLARK GETS SOCIAL
Once you get through Ryan Clark’s three-minute video tribute to himself on X, his message to ESPN suits is not hard to decipher: Your contract offers sucks and I’m about to move on.
Clark’s ESPN contract expired and he’s negotiating a new one, apparently through social media.
Clark, a passionate, outspoken, insightful analyst, makes a case for how his hard work, grinding and tunnel-vision approach has led to him becoming one of the top NFL analysts on ESPN’s roster. Clark leaves the impression that he works harder than his colleagues at the network.
Clark paying homage to his own work-ethic leads to the following question: Isn’t drive and preparation part of the job description? It’s not special. It’s what you’re supposed to do.
The Bristol Faculty may not be thrilled with Clark attempting to put pressure on them through social media posts. Also, might potential employers at other networks see it as a red flag and become skittish dealing with someone who goes public when he has an issue with the company?
JJ TO THE RESCUE
Like the Batman signal lighting up the dark Gotham night, one can envision ESPN using a glowing basketball to make an urgent call for the man who invented hoops, JJ Redick.
Redick’s mission: To parachute in and save ESPN’s No. 1 NBA broadcast team.
The coming of Redick might actually inject some much-needed personality to the combo of Mike Breen and Doris Burke. They have delivered a certain blandness during their few performances together this season.
AROUND THE DIAL
TNT Sports brainiacs have no problem teaming Draymond Green with Charles Barkley for their alternative NBA All-Star telecast Sunday night on TruTV. Green is fresh off an indefinite suspension for striking Suns center Jusuf Nurkic. No doubt Adam Silver had to bless TNT’s decision to reward Green for bad behavior. Yet the unpredictable couple — Barkley/Green — will entice eyeballs to the AltCast. And that’s all that matters to the commissioner. … SXM’s Christopher (Mad Dog) Russo is pushing hard for Brent Musburger to receive the Pete Rozelle Radio-TV award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Russo, who credits Musburger for creating CBS’ “The NFL Today” (it was actually then CBS Sports president the late Robert Wussler), went as far as to say it “would be criminal” if Musburger doesn’t receive the award. Criminal? … It appears those who still choose to listen to local Valley of the Stupid Gasbags are destined (doomed might be a better word) to hear daily soliloquies about whether the Mets are ever going sign Pete Alonso. Tired! … So sorry for those who streamed the Super Bowl on Paramount+ and had to put up with technical problems. Not exactly an endorsement for the NFL’s commitment to streaming. … Among all the Super Bowl promos and commercials, CBS neglected to promote its own CBS Sports Network postgame show leading to eyeballs either going to ESPN or NFL Network’s live, on the field, offerings. … After an over eight-year run (1,775 shows) on CBSSN, Adam Schein was gracious while signing off “Time To Schein” for the final time Monday. Schein used much of his farewell to thank, by name, all his colleagues. Class act.
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DUDE OF THE WEEK: VANESSA BRYANT
For her poise. Her grace. Her sincerity. All were on display last week at the unveiling of her late husband, Kobe’s, statue outside the Lakers arena in Los Angeles. “It brings me joy to see how much love you have for all of us,” she said. “We love you back.”
DWEEB OF THE WEEK: WOODY JOHNSON
For his cockeyed approach to ownership. He used an appearance during Super Bowl week to finally ratchet up the pressure (at least publicly) on Robert Saleh. Then after the Chiefs squeaked by San Francisco to win the Super Bowl, Mr. Johnson thought it was a swell time to announce his Jets would be revealing new uniforms in April.
DOUBLE TALK
What Kyle Shanahan said: “But just where we’re at with our team from a scheme standpoint and looking through this year to the last few years this is a decision [firing DC Steve Wilks] that was best for our organization.”
What Kyle Shanahan meant to say: “We needed a scapegoat and I found one.”
