CBS Sports is taking the interim tag off of JJ Watt.
CBS Sports announced Thursday that it has reached a multi-year deal with Watt to remain its lead NFL game analyst, ending any speculation about his future in the role. Prior to the season, Watt ascended to the network’s lead broadcast team alongside Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson as a fill-in for Tony Romo, who was arrested on OWI in July and subsequently took a leave of absence from CBS. When that leave became permanent earlier this month, Watt was given the lead role for the remainder of the season.
It had not been previously clear whether CBS, which has the Super Bowl next year, would commit to Watt as its lead analyst beyond this season. ESPN “Monday Night Football” analyst Troy Aikman and Fox Sports analyst Greg Olsen are in the final years of their respective contracts and between them have called the Super Bowl seven times. Both are considerably more seasoned than Watt, who is in just his second year as a game analyst.
Watt still has yet to call a playoff game, having spent last season on the network’s secondary team alongside Ian Eagle.
Thursday’s announcement marks the culmination of a quick ascension for Watt, who joined CBS fresh out of retirement in 2023 as an analyst on its “The NFL Today” studio show. The network shifted him to game analysis last season, a move widely seen as part of a backup or succession plan for Romo, who had by all accounts fallen out of favor.
With CBS now committing to Watt long-term, there is one less opening available for Aikman, Olsen and any other potential #1 analyst candidate — including some, like Rams coach Sean McVay, who have yet to enter broadcasting. ESPN will almost certainly have an opening given Aikman’s public statements regarding his contract, his reported conflict with Buck, and his reported asking price of $30 million. Olsen, who was the lead Fox analyst between Aikman’s departure and Tom Brady’s arrival, is widely expected to contend for the “MNF” role.
The only other possible opening is at Amazon, which signed Kirk Herbstreit to a contract extension earlier this year, but reportedly has the “flexibility” to exit the deal should a preferred option come along. Aikman was linked to Amazon during his 2022 contract negotiations, but so too was McVay — whose availability this offseason seems more realistic after much-hyped Los Angeles opened the season 2-4.
