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In the days leading up to the Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers game Thursday night, the NFL Network decided speculation about Brett Favre's future was the best way to sell it.
The fledgling channel seized on the ambiguity of Favre's intentions to promote the game as maybe the last home game Favre will play at Lambeau Field. The network built their ads for the game around that notion.
NFL Network play-by-play announcer Bryant Gumbel dutifully brought the promotion storyline into the booth.
But his broadcast partner, Cris Collinsworth, pronounced the idea dead on arrival.
"This could be the last time before his home town fans," Gumbel said, referring to Favre. "An iconic figure of unprecedented proportions here in Green Bay, Favre has been a record-setting mainstay at quarterback since 1992."
Gumbel asked Collinsworth if he thought Favre was coming back, and Collinsworth gave the answer most anyone who has been following the team this year would give.
"I think anything is possible and I would love to build the drama here a little bit, but if you are asking me to honest, I'd say no," Collinsworth said. "I think he is coming back, I really do."
What a farewell party-pooper that Collinsworth is. The whole reason the NFL Network chose this game for its eight-game package this season in the first place was with the idea that Favre may be playing his last home game.
But as bad as he is selling the company line, you were reminded Thursday night Collinsworth has to be the best NFL game analyst in the business without a weekly assignment. He's a good studio analyst, but he's just as good or better at games. It's a shame he's stuck behind John Madden at NBC, which carries just one game a week.
Collinsworth said he considered tight end the chief need area for Green Bay, something we haven't heard any other analyst say this season.
"Of the issues that I really believe that the Packers are going to have to address in the off-season is the tight end position," Collinsworth said. "Bubba Franks has been a terrific player here for a long time, but they simply did not get production out of that position that they have in the past. . . . That would be my number one position for the Packers in the off-season."
Collinsworth missed or struggled with a few rules - there's no pass interference behind the line of scrimmage and a defender had a foot out of bounds before scooping a fumble, so the Packers kept possession. Some games have the benefit of a referee watching in an office in New York who is in contact with a telecast's production truck. It sounded as though Collinsworth was getting some of that in his ear.
At one point, he called Vikings rookie quarterback Tarvaris "Tillman," instead of Tarvaris Jackson.
Gumbel seemed relaxed but tentative. At times, he was out of sync with the rhythm of the game. He didn't sound like he was announcing a game, but having a conversation with a Collinsworth while a game was going on.
He was out of sync with his partner a lot. Gumbel had a habit of talking when Collinsworth was starting to handle replays. So we got a lot of apologies from Gumbel, as in: "I'm sorry, go ahead, Cris." and "Forgive me." And "I'm sorry."
Gumbel needs to get out of Collinsworth's way. He needs to be more efficient that way.
Gumbel seems to be aiming at being tart-tongued, getting off some wise-guy commentary.
He succeeded when Packers wide receiver Carlyle Holiday, the former Notre Dame quarterback, sailed a pass off an option reverse.
"Weren't those the kind of throws that got Bob Davie fired?" Gumbel said, referring to the former Irish coach.
Collinsworth noted Favre rearing back like a pitcher to deliver a pass down the middle of the field.
"He looked like Nolan Ryan on that one," Collinsworth said. "I've seen him do a lot of funny things throwing the football, but that one I've never seen before."
Gumbel quipped: "It was almost a balk."
He described the play by both teams in the first half as "kind of moribund." At the beginning of fourth quarter, Gumbel went for a simpler lexicon.
"(This) has been kind of an ugly ball game," Gumbel said. "There is no way to dress it up."
The telecast included Favre being mic'd up, but as is often the case we really didn't end up hearing much. We heard the typical collection of thuds and grunts. Oh, yeah, we did hear Favre say before the game to Steve Mariucci as he hugged him: "I love you, man."
Mariucci is a former Packers assistant who now works for the NFL Network as a studio analyst.
Maybe the best sound bite was played in the fourth quarter, with Favre explaining to coach Mike McCarthy that he thought receiver Greg Jennings wasn't going stop on a sideline route. We couldn't hear McCarthy's response, though.
The fledgling channel seized on the ambiguity of Favre's intentions to promote the game as maybe the last home game Favre will play at Lambeau Field. The network built their ads for the game around that notion.
NFL Network play-by-play announcer Bryant Gumbel dutifully brought the promotion storyline into the booth.
But his broadcast partner, Cris Collinsworth, pronounced the idea dead on arrival.
"This could be the last time before his home town fans," Gumbel said, referring to Favre. "An iconic figure of unprecedented proportions here in Green Bay, Favre has been a record-setting mainstay at quarterback since 1992."
Gumbel asked Collinsworth if he thought Favre was coming back, and Collinsworth gave the answer most anyone who has been following the team this year would give.
"I think anything is possible and I would love to build the drama here a little bit, but if you are asking me to honest, I'd say no," Collinsworth said. "I think he is coming back, I really do."
What a farewell party-pooper that Collinsworth is. The whole reason the NFL Network chose this game for its eight-game package this season in the first place was with the idea that Favre may be playing his last home game.
But as bad as he is selling the company line, you were reminded Thursday night Collinsworth has to be the best NFL game analyst in the business without a weekly assignment. He's a good studio analyst, but he's just as good or better at games. It's a shame he's stuck behind John Madden at NBC, which carries just one game a week.
Collinsworth said he considered tight end the chief need area for Green Bay, something we haven't heard any other analyst say this season.
"Of the issues that I really believe that the Packers are going to have to address in the off-season is the tight end position," Collinsworth said. "Bubba Franks has been a terrific player here for a long time, but they simply did not get production out of that position that they have in the past. . . . That would be my number one position for the Packers in the off-season."
Collinsworth missed or struggled with a few rules - there's no pass interference behind the line of scrimmage and a defender had a foot out of bounds before scooping a fumble, so the Packers kept possession. Some games have the benefit of a referee watching in an office in New York who is in contact with a telecast's production truck. It sounded as though Collinsworth was getting some of that in his ear.
At one point, he called Vikings rookie quarterback Tarvaris "Tillman," instead of Tarvaris Jackson.
Gumbel seemed relaxed but tentative. At times, he was out of sync with the rhythm of the game. He didn't sound like he was announcing a game, but having a conversation with a Collinsworth while a game was going on.
He was out of sync with his partner a lot. Gumbel had a habit of talking when Collinsworth was starting to handle replays. So we got a lot of apologies from Gumbel, as in: "I'm sorry, go ahead, Cris." and "Forgive me." And "I'm sorry."
Gumbel needs to get out of Collinsworth's way. He needs to be more efficient that way.
Gumbel seems to be aiming at being tart-tongued, getting off some wise-guy commentary.
He succeeded when Packers wide receiver Carlyle Holiday, the former Notre Dame quarterback, sailed a pass off an option reverse.
"Weren't those the kind of throws that got Bob Davie fired?" Gumbel said, referring to the former Irish coach.
Collinsworth noted Favre rearing back like a pitcher to deliver a pass down the middle of the field.
"He looked like Nolan Ryan on that one," Collinsworth said. "I've seen him do a lot of funny things throwing the football, but that one I've never seen before."
Gumbel quipped: "It was almost a balk."
He described the play by both teams in the first half as "kind of moribund." At the beginning of fourth quarter, Gumbel went for a simpler lexicon.
"(This) has been kind of an ugly ball game," Gumbel said. "There is no way to dress it up."
The telecast included Favre being mic'd up, but as is often the case we really didn't end up hearing much. We heard the typical collection of thuds and grunts. Oh, yeah, we did hear Favre say before the game to Steve Mariucci as he hugged him: "I love you, man."
Mariucci is a former Packers assistant who now works for the NFL Network as a studio analyst.
Maybe the best sound bite was played in the fourth quarter, with Favre explaining to coach Mike McCarthy that he thought receiver Greg Jennings wasn't going stop on a sideline route. We couldn't hear McCarthy's response, though.
