Buftex Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Chris Berman is being offered boatloads of money to leave ESPN, for the NFL Network... http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/...ursuing-berman/ I know it is in vogue to trash anything that is tradition, or has been going on for a while...but I think Berman, as a NFL football guy, is still pretty great. People always rag on him for his "tired schtick", but I never sense that he isn't enjoying the hell out of what he is doing...if he leaves ESPN, that would be a huge void... I suppose the 2000 people who get the NFL Network can enjoy! "Brooks adds that ESPN is expected to make a "reasonable" pitch to retain Berman, but "will not break the bank to keep him." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davefan66 Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Chris Berman is being offered boatloads of money to leave ESPN, for the NFL Network... http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/...ursuing-berman/ I know it is in vogue to trash anything that is tradition, or has been going on for a while...but I think Berman, as a NFL football guy, is still pretty great. People always rag on him for his "tired schtick", but I never sense that he isn't enjoying the hell out of what he is doing...if he leaves ESPN, that would be a huge void... I suppose the 2000 people who get the NFL Network can enjoy! "Brooks adds that ESPN is expected to make a "reasonable" pitch to retain Berman, but "will not break the bank to keep him." No big deal. Berman is a shell of his former self. NFL Primetime is a good wrap show, but it's all about Tom Jackson anyway. I'm all about continuity, but could care less if he ends up elsewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steely Dan Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Isn't Berman ESPN's signature star? I don't care where he goes, he'll always be a Bills fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Anderson's Lunch Pail Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I don't think he is anymore. Ever since they lost the exclusive highlight packages on Sunday before the night game, he seems to have lost his effectiveness. Primetime was unique; the pre-game show is just one of one of many. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chandler#81 Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I still chose him over anyone else. It doesn't get tired with me. He represents the entire lifetime of ESPN. Almost impossible to picture sports fans today dealing with what we did from pre-1980. One things' for sure, newspapers were still in vogue. He's part of their (ESPN) Baseball group as well. If he leaves, they'll lose me too. I'll get all my NFL news from NFLN. IDK, maybe it's a good thing. I don't like the direction ESPN has evolved into. That said, there's a couple openings @NFLN -Sapp & Irvin <shock> with recent legal issues.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyBillsFan Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Does does a great football game on coverage and play by play But I think he is better at baseball. His games are more enjoyable to watch sitting at home! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrpunchy Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 No big deal. Berman is a shell of his former self. NFL Primetime is a good wrap show, but it's all about Tom Jackson anyway. I'm all about continuity, but could care less if he ends up elsewhere. FAIL. Berman is great and I would love to see him on the NFL network. After over a decade of dealing with the Time Warner bullcrap I switched to Directv and haven't looked back. The nfl network is great. Why would people still deal with Time Warner they offer little over Directtv and less than FIOS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I stopped watching any pre- or post-game NFL shows years ago. There's just no need, with the Sunday Ticket and everything available online. The only NFL shows worth watching are NFL Films productions -- IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Endzone Animal Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Berman and Eisen...I like it. Hope they take TJ for the ride, too. They are like brothers at this point. ESPN...feh, let them choke and die on their lame hip-hop wannabe, Stu Scott. Primetime was the only highlight show worth a ****, and now that they had to end it in deference to MSNBC's postgame coverage I'm hoping he returns to the roll he owns with NFL Network. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stinky finger Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Berman's leaving ESPN?!?!?! Hmmmm, I might just tune in now to get me some NFL fix. On second thought, maybe not. There are still others there that make me ill. Berman topped the list, though. Problem is, I love NFLN. If he goes there, he'd better stop his OLD TIRED SCHTICK! It's akin to marching Th Who out at halftime. Past his PRIMETIME! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloWings Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 No big deal. Berman is a shell of his former self. NFL Primetime is a good wrap show, but it's all about Tom Jackson anyway. I'm all about continuity, but could care less if he ends up elsewhere. NFL at ESPN is all about Chris Berman. Without him, it's nothing. He's the one who runs the show. He made the old Primetime. I never really thought that TJ was all that great, but he & Berman clicked and have good on-air chemistry. Even after NBC took the Sunday night package, I'd still watch the Sunday night Sportscenter for his highlights. Berman has been one of the few bright spots at ESPN these days for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RkFast Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Like someone else said Berman is a goofy shell of himself. If I want to hear "WHOOOP WHOOOOP WHOOOP" for an hour, Ill stand outside a firehouse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 While remembering that money talks, I'm not entirely convinced Berman would make the jump to a network which covers a single sport. Gammons to MLB.com was a logical move. While Berman would still be able to get his NFL fix, no more Masters, no more baseball ... not sure he'd take that tradeoff, or be happy with the results if he did. And I trust McIntyre (TBL) even less than Florio. Some of his 'scoops' haven't exactly squared with the facts, going back to his days at the Record. So, we'll see. The DirecTV bit is more intriguing. After all, Berman did take a chance on helping to start a sports channel, once upon a time ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dean Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I'll miss Berman on ESPN, but I'm not sure how this changes "the way we watch football" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBud Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I'll miss Berman on ESPN, but I'm not sure how this changes "the way we watch football" +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truth on hold Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 You can get anyone to host a show, it doesn't matter. The real importance are the analysts. Steve Young is the only one consistently insightful, Tom Jackson is a waste and Ditka is entertaining only because he's an old buffoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gugny Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I still chose him over anyone else. It doesn't get tired with me. He represents the entire lifetime of ESPN. Almost impossible to picture sports fans today dealing with what we did from pre-1980. One things' for sure, newspapers were still in vogue. He's part of their (ESPN) Baseball group as well. If he leaves, they'll lose me too. I'll get all my NFL news from NFLN. IDK, maybe it's a good thing. I don't like the direction ESPN has evolved into. That said, there's a couple openings @NFLN -Sapp & Irvin <shock> with recent legal issues.. I've always been a big Berman fan and still am. ESPN has lost a lot, already. Berman's actually one of the few that I can still stomach. If Stuart Scott starts doing NFL in Berman's place, I'll never watch ESPN again. ESPN screwed Harold Reynolds over, and he went to the MLB Network. Peter Gammons, a baseball God in my eyes, bailed out and went to MLBN. Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann are long gone. Berman's as good as gone, and I think NFLN will win out on this deal. MLBN has way more credibility than the ESPN baseball crew now. NFLN will jump another level if they get Berman. Hopefully, TJ will be soon to follow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
extrahammer Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Hopefully, TJ will be soon to follow. That's the thing right there. Whether you like Berman or not, if he jumps to the NFL Network, other sports personalities aren't going to think NFLN is just bush league anymore. And they will fight for the chance to sit next to Berman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubes Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 While remembering that money talks, I'm not entirely convinced Berman would make the jump to a network which covers a single sport. Gammons to MLB.com was a logical move. While Berman would still be able to get his NFL fix, no more Masters, no more baseball ... not sure he'd take that tradeoff, or be happy with the results if he did. Good point, but couldn't Berman get a deal with NFLN where he's allowed limited work with, say, CBS or Fox for the Masters and MLB? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BYGD1 Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 The NFL Network other then a handful of games you miss, is worthless, most of it is repeat TV not much original, and surely not cutting edge. We will however be forced to watch it soon as more and more games will be found there only. The NFL is shooting themselves in the Foot in the long run why will Big Networks give them boat loads of money when they are taking the game pool away from them.. NFL cant survive with NFL network alone... The SNYDER's and JONE's will ruin this great sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Good point, but couldn't Berman get a deal with NFLN where he's allowed limited work with, say, CBS or Fox for the Masters and MLB? Debatable, since both those networks are NFL rightsholders and may not want to give airtime to someone from a competing network. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharper802 Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Chris Berman is being offered boatloads of money to leave ESPN, for the NFL Network... http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/...ursuing-berman/ I know it is in vogue to trash anything that is tradition, or has been going on for a while...but I think Berman, as a NFL football guy, is still pretty great. People always rag on him for his "tired schtick", but I never sense that he isn't enjoying the hell out of what he is doing...if he leaves ESPN, that would be a huge void... I suppose the 2000 people who get the NFL Network can enjoy! "Brooks adds that ESPN is expected to make a "reasonable" pitch to retain Berman, but "will not break the bank to keep him." Seriously with all the available online resources and TiVo who watches pre and post game coverage? Who wathces the games in real time? I watch the games on TiVO so I can blow by the bad announcers and commercials every 5 minutes. Maybe it is because I am old and tired(age 39) but Berman stopped being entertaining years ago. Hell ESPN's best commentator may be Keyshawn Johnson. Salisbury steak was intolerable. TJ is clueless. Young talks about QB's as if they walk on water. Ditka - old buffoon as someone else posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judman Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Chris Berman is being offered boatloads of money to leave ESPN, for the NFL Network... http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/...ursuing-berman/ I know it is in vogue to trash anything that is tradition, or has been going on for a while...but I think Berman, as a NFL football guy, is still pretty great. People always rag on him for his "tired schtick", but I never sense that he isn't enjoying the hell out of what he is doing...if he leaves ESPN, that would be a huge void... I suppose the 2000 people who get the NFL Network can enjoy! "Brooks adds that ESPN is expected to make a "reasonable" pitch to retain Berman, but "will not break the bank to keep him." I don't know if 2000 people have NFLN, that sounds like a high number to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
extrahammer Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I don't know if 2000 people have NFLN, that sounds like a high number to me. Well, DirecTV currently has over 18 million subscribers, so... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 Well, DirecTV currently has over 18 million subscribers, so... That's close to 2000, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted February 9, 2010 Author Share Posted February 9, 2010 I'll miss Berman on ESPN, but I'm not sure how this changes "the way we watch football" Sorry The Dean, you're such a little stickler... As for me, I am not a big fan of the NFL Network either. I realize, it is pretty new still, but the last few times I went back to Buffalo, my folks, and one of my sisters both had Direct TV... I was excited about the opportunity to enjoy the NFLN for a few weeks during the season... I found it no better than ESPN, just more repetitive... and I realize this make me an old fuddy duddy, but I think that NFL Redzone thing that everyone thinks is so wonderful, represents pretty much everything I hate about the way football is covered now... all highlights, out of context.... an ADD nightmare... I realize there is a chance Berman will not go, but I don't know...at 54 years old, wouldn't working less for more money appeal to most? It would be hard to turn something that offered that down, I would imagine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted February 9, 2010 Author Share Posted February 9, 2010 The NFL Network other then a handful of games you miss, is worthless, most of it is repeat TV not much original, and surely not cutting edge. We will however be forced to watch it soon as more and more games will be found there only. The NFL is shooting themselves in the Foot in the long run why will Big Networks give them boat loads of money when they are taking the game pool away from them.. NFL cant survive with NFL network alone... The SNYDER's and JONE's will ruin this great sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
extrahammer Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I miss the show '6 days til kickoff' or something like that on NFLN when it first came out. Takeo Spikes and the Bills were on one time and it was pretty cool. Not sure why they did away with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SouthernMan Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 I stopped watching any pre- or post-game NFL shows years ago. There's just no need, with the Sunday Ticket and everything available online. The only NFL shows worth watching are NFL Films productions -- IMO. Right on. As a displaced Buffalonian in Atlanta, starving for a crumb of Bills news, it was part of the routine to watch the pre-game shows back in the day. When the Levy/Kelly regime was taking form, and Bills football was getting exciting again, I anxiously awaited the Buffalo News clippings sent from friends and relatives in Buffalo. Those communiques from back home and the ESPN or network (NBC and CBS) pregame shows was the full extent of getting our Bills fix. Later, publications like SHOUT! made it more tolerable, if they made it to our mailbox. It worked great in theory, though the omni-present conspiracy against anything Buffalo meant the US Postal frequently "lost" it somewhere along the way. In the late 90s, the internet burst full force onto the scene, with 24/7 access to any interest you can think of. That was the point at which the pregame broadcasts became obsolete for me. TiVo/DVR capabilities further streamlined the time I needed to devote to leisure and interests like The Bills. In fact, rather than sit down at noon on Sunday for pregame nonsense, I usually record the Bills, wait until 2pm, zip through the commercials, and finish up around the same time as everyone else. That's 2 hours of my weekend I can dedicate to something more productive. I supposed if the Bills were the media darlings of the decade with wider coverage by the pundits, I might be more inclined to watch. Of course I'd record it and skip all the Tom Brady and Tony Romo lovefests, pausing only at the first sign of the familiar charging bison logo. But all in all, I can do without the fratboy flavored gab fest on FOX or CBS. It's like steroid version of The View. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilbuffalobob Posted February 9, 2010 Share Posted February 9, 2010 They come and they go... there's always someone else waiting in the wings for cake jobs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 But all in all, I can do without the fratboy flavored gab fest on FOX or CBS. It's like steroid version of The View. Well said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan89 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Honestly I couldn't care less if Berman leaves. Don't get me wrong I like Berman a lot (Bills fan and he is OK at commentary) but in reality its not really going to be a game changer people I feel don't really tune into post or pre game shows that much because of one guy. People like the broadcast as a whole (Personalities, features, type of analysis) not really just to tune into one guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted February 10, 2010 Author Share Posted February 10, 2010 Honestly I couldn't care less if Berman leaves. Don't get me wrong I like Berman a lot (Bills fan and he is OK at commentary) but in reality its not really going to be a game changer people I feel don't really tune into post or pre game shows that much because of one guy. People like the broadcast as a whole (Personalities, features, type of analysis) not really just to tune into one guy. I will admit, I don't watch the pre-/post game stuff as religiously, as I used to either, like most here. However, when I do, I always prefer to see Berman more than anyone else. I never watch the FOX or CBS pre-game shows, even for a minute. If nobody tunes in for one guy, maybe the NFLN should save their money. I may not tune in for one guy, but I will certainly avoid some shows because of one guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davefan66 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 NFL at ESPN is all about Chris Berman. Without him, it's nothing. He's the one who runs the show. He made the old Primetime. I never really thought that TJ was all that great, but he & Berman clicked and have good on-air chemistry. Even after NBC took the Sunday night package, I'd still watch the Sunday night Sportscenter for his highlights. Berman has been one of the few bright spots at ESPN these days for me. TJ offers much more insight to the pregame and post game shows than Berman. He offers his honest opinion, without all the fluff. Berman is stuck in his "Back, back, back" days and would hardly be missed by me if he left. ESPN is a machine and wouldn't miss a step if he left, how valuable is he? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyT Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 I don't have ESPN or NFLN so ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Chris Berman is being offered boatloads of money to leave ESPN, for the NFL Network... http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/...ursuing-berman/ I know it is in vogue to trash anything that is tradition, or has been going on for a while...but I think Berman, as a NFL football guy, is still pretty great. People always rag on him for his "tired schtick", but I never sense that he isn't enjoying the hell out of what he is doing...if he leaves ESPN, that would be a huge void... I suppose the 2000 people who get the NFL Network can enjoy! "Brooks adds that ESPN is expected to make a "reasonable" pitch to retain Berman, but "will not break the bank to keep him." I don't know how anyone could give Berman any grief. Besides the late Tim Russert, Berman is one of the few national personalities that actually backs the Bills. If you want to talk about lame personalities, one need look no further than the horrid CBS pre-game show. Shannon Sharpe is a loud mouth baffoon, Marino is a whining baby, and Cowher's chin owns so much of the camera that it's hard to see anything else. None of them are funny or even the slightest bit entertaining. If it wasn't for James Brown and some reasonable input by Esiason, I'd say blow it all up! Berman is a legend and it would be disappointing to see him leave ESPN for the NFL Network. I personally feel that Rich Eisen's schtick is getting old, but Berman IS ESPN. Berman and Tom Jackson rock! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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