Boomer Esiason and Phil Simms out, JJ Watt and Matt Ryan in on CBS's The NFL Today
The two Pro Bowl quarterbacks are out at CBS after 48 combined years.
CBS’s bellwether Sunday NFL show is going to look different in 2024. Boomer Esiason and Phil Simms, two longtime standbys for pre- and post-game analysis on The NFL Today, are leaving the network.
Esiason and Simms had spent a combined 48 years at CBS — Esiason 22 and Simms 26. The two former Pro Bowl quarterbacks were reliable fountains of analysis alongside James Brown, Bill Cowher, Nate Burleson and, on a part-time basis, JJ Watt in 2024. In order to fill the voids they’ve left behind, fellow former quarterback Matt Ryan will go from the color commentary side of things to the pre-game show. Watt and Burleson are expected to play larger roles as well.
Here’s what Esiason had to say about his departure:
Boomer Esiason announces he is leaving The NFL Today on CBS, but signed an extension to continue his WFAN morning show with Gio pic.twitter.com/91E0OzmGx9
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 29, 2024
“I am stepping away from The NFL Today on CBS,” said Esiason on his WFAN radio show. “More their decision than maybe mine. But I really thought the Super Bowl was my swan song and I thought the way CBS handled, especially us in Las Vegas, was amazing.
“I had been there for 22 years. It’s been an unbelievable run for me and I’m so grateful and privileged to have been there for 22 years.”
Simms took to Twitter for a brief confirmation of the news.
Great 26 yrs run with CBS SPORTS. Even though that part of my career is over I look forward to what is next..
— Phil Simms (@PhilSimmsQB) April 29, 2024
The NFL Today will undoubtedly feel different without its wise, occasionally slightly bitter quarterback sages in the middle of the debate. Esiason and Simms brought a certain gravity to the desk, even if the overstuffed nature of ever-expanding studio shows had tamped down their input over the last decade.
Ryan should be able to replicate some of that after a reasonable broadcasting debut last fall. But until we see the new panel in action, it’s hard to know whether this was a necessary step for CBS to move forward or a jump backward for the network’s sports coverage.