Sports Media Winners and Losers From the Start of Football Season

Thank the sports Gods—football is back. After a wild first week of NFL action and two weekends of college football, here are some sports media winners and losers:

Winners

• Mike Tomlin: NBC Sports made the biggest hire of the offseason, bringing in Tomlin. The ex-Steelers coach is a natural for TV, with his short, pithy Tomlin-isms. The Super Bowl winner immediately made Football Night in America feel bigger and better. Could Tomlin eventually move into the broadcast booth as Cris Collinsworth’s successor? We will see.

• ESPN’s Monday Night Football: It’s good to have Troy Aikman and Joe Buck calling Monday Night Football. Since the old days in the NFL doghouse, ESPN has gotten increasingly better schedules with the duo behind the mic. That paid off Monday when ESPN aired Patrick Mahomes’s dramatic comeback from injury during the Chiefs’ 31–10 win over the Broncos. With 23.2 million viewers, it was ESPN’s most-watched Week 1 game ever—and third most-watched since gaining the MNF package in 2006.

• Joe Buck: Speaking of Monday Night Football, news emerged Wednesday that Buck was extending his deal with ESPN. He’ll now be behind the mic for the mothership’s first two Super Bowls in 2027 and 2031. But Buck’s numbers are eye-popping: six years and $108 million, according to The Athletic. And what’s going on with his partner, Aikman, whose deal is also about to expire?

• Giants: The G-Men could be the feel-good comeback story of the season, similar to the Patriots last year. They have young, telegenic stars like QB Jaxson Dart, WR Malik Nabers, and RB Cam  Skattebo. They play in the country’s media capital—and biggest TV market. With the Giants dominating the Cowboys on both sides of the ball on Sunday Night Football, NBC pulled the most-watched game of Week 1, with 25.7 million viewers.

• John McClain: The retired Houston Chronicle columnist was one of the first big names eliminated as the Pro Football Hall of Fame sought to slim down its 50-member voting committee to 28 after last year’s Bill Belichick debacle. Other big-name cuts like Super Bowl-winning coach Tony Dungy and Lisa Salters have since emerged. But nothing has stung sports media members more than dumping “The General” after 33 years. McClain took the high road in his public comments. I won’t: This stinks.

Losers

• Tony Romo: Unfortunately, we have to start with CBS Sports’s embattled No. 1 game analyst, who’s still on indefinite leave after settling a civil OWI charge. J.J. Watt is “temporarily” replacing the ex-Cowboys quarterback. But that change could become permanent if CBS decides to wriggle out of the remaining four years and $72 million of Romo’s 10-year deal. No, Watt was not better than Romo in his debut with Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson. But Watt only has to convince a jury of one: network president David Berson, who personally recruited him in 2023. CBS revealed its broadcast teams for Weeks 2 and 3. Guess what? Romo’s name was nowhere to be found.

• Steve Sarkisian: The Texas head coach should be the toast of college football after his team’s stirring come-from-behind win over Ohio State. Instead, we’re still talking about his churlish treatment of ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe. Even at the age of 22, QB Arch Manning was mature enough to apologize for joking about an AI-generated video showing Sarkisian striking Rowe during a post-game interview. How about you there, Sark?

• Oregon: The Ducks were ranked No. 2 in preseason rankings. But Oregon is off to a disappointing 1–1 start after an upset 39–31 loss to Oklahoma State. Meanwhile, Coach Dan Lanning is getting testy with a typically adoring local media. ESPN also aired an eye-popping video of quarterback Dante Moore tipping off opposing defenses with his poor footwork. Clean it up, Oregon.