Oct 24, 2020; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Urban Meyer during game coverage for Fox Sports at the game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Ohio Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Report: Fox pregame crew subbed over COVID-19 concerns

Fox Sports announced Wednesday evening that the network’s normal pregame show analysts — Urban Meyer, Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and Brady Quinn — will be held out of this Saturday’s broadcast, with the New York Post reporting that the reason is related to COVID-19 concerns.

Per the Post report, the show’s analysts and host Rob Stone will be shelved for this weekend’s show leading into the Arizona State-Southern California game in Los Angeles because of quarantine protocols.

While the network did not disclose the specific purpose of the move, it did post a statement on Twitter that cited safety guidelines from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and “out of an abundance of caution for our team.”

Instead of the usual group, the network will feature host Charissa Thompson along with analysts Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Emmanuel Acho. Bradshaw and Long are longtime members of the network’s Fox NFL Sunday pregame show, on which Thompson is an occasional reporter. Acho participates on the daily “Speak For Yourself” show on Fox Sports 1.

In addition to the cast change, Fox announced that this week’s pregame program will be shortened from the normal two-hour format to one hour, starting at 11 a.m. ET before the noon ET kickoff at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

–Field Level Media

Sep 13, 2020; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) against the New Orleans Saints during the first quarter at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Brady’s Bucs debut vs. Saints delivers ratings boost for Fox

The clash between Drew Brees and Tom Brady, making his debut in a Tampa Bay uniform, was a ratings bonanza Sunday for Fox Sports, which said it was the network’s highest-rated Week 1 national telecast since 2016.

The game, a 34-23 win for the New Orleans Saints over the Buccaneers — drew a 16.2 rating, up 2 percent over last season’s opener, Fox said on Monday. The network said the game projects to rank as the most-watched telecast of any kind since Super Bowl LIV in February.

That was good news for broadcasters after Thursday night’s season kickoff game on NBC between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs drew 13 percent fewer viewers than the 2019 opener between the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears, according to ratings service Nielsen.

An estimated 19.3 million fans tuned in to see the Texans-Chiefs broadcast, while the Packers-Bears contest attracted 22.2 million viewers last season.

–Field Level Media

Sep 25, 2019; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Reds radio announcer Marty Brennaman (left) and his son Thom Brennaman (right) broadcast from a temporary radio booth in the seating bowl at the beginning of a game between the Milwaukee Brewers an the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports

FOX Sports takes Brennaman off NFL broadcasts

Thom Brennaman will no longer broadcast NFL games on FOX Sports after he used a homophobic slur on the air while calling a baseball game, the network announced Thursday.

Brennaman, 56, was suspended as the Cincinnati Reds’ play-by-play voice after he made a comment on Fox Sports Ohio while apparently thinking his microphone was off. The Reds were playing the first game of a doubleheader in Kansas City, which he described as “one of the (expletive) capitals of the world” as a camera spanned the field before the top of the seventh inning.

“FOX Sports is extremely disappointed with Thom’s remarks during Wednesday’s Cincinnati Reds telecast,” the network said in a statement. “The language used was abhorrent, unacceptable, and not representative of the values of FOX Sports. As it relates to Brennaman’s FOX NFL role, we are moving forward with our NFL schedule which will not include him.”

The clip of Brennaman’s comment quickly went viral on social media. Brennaman remained on the broadcast for the remainder of Game 1 of the doubleheader and the start of Game 2, but he apologized in the top of the fifth inning of the second game before being replaced by Jim Day, who typically works as the broadcast team’s on-field reporter.

“I made a comment earlier tonight, that, I guess, went out over the air, that I am deeply ashamed of,” Brennaman said. “If I have hurt anyone out there, I can’t tell you how much I say from the bottom of my heart, I’m so very, very sorry. I pride myself and think of myself as a man of faith. …

“I don’t know if I’m going to be putting on this headset again. I don’t if it’s going to be for the Reds, I don’t know if it’s going to be for my bosses at FOX. I’m going to apologize to the people who sign my paycheck, for the Reds, for Fox Sports Ohio, for the people I work with, for anybody that I’ve offended here tonight.

“I can’t begin to tell you how deeply sorry I am. That is not who I am. It never has been. And I’d like to think maybe I could have some people who could back that up. I am very, very sorry, and I beg for your forgiveness.”

The son of legendary broadcaster Marty Brennaman, Thom has called Major League Baseball games for 33 years and has been with FOX Sports for the past 27.

–Field Level Media

January 19, 2020; Santa Clara, California, USA; Jimmy Johnson during the third quarter in the NFC Championship Game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Green Bay Packers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

FOX’s Jimmy Johnson to work from home during pandemic

FOX Sports analyst Jimmy Johnson said Thursday he will work from home during the NFL season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“After much consideration, and with the full support of FOX Sports, I’ve decided not to travel to L.A. studio for FOX NFL SUNDAY for the time being due to the pandemic,” the Hall of Fame coach posted on Twitter. “I will still contribute to the broadcast and I can’t wait to talk football with my guys remotely!”

Johnson, 77, was selected in January to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Centennial Class of 2020. The enshrinement ceremony has been postponed to 2021.

Johnson succeeded Tom Landry as the second coach in Dallas Cowboys’ history. He overcame a 1-15 start in 1989 and quickly made Dallas a contender over the next two seasons before securing back-to-back Super Bowl titles in 1992 and 1993.

Johnson posted a 44-36 record during his five seasons with Dallas before parting ways with the Cowboys.

He replaced another legendary coach in Don Shula when he became head coach of the Miami Dolphins in 1996, guiding the club to three playoff appearances during his four-year stint. Johnson had an 80-64 overall coaching record in the NFL.

–Field Level Media