ESPN Actually Wants to Broadcast a Super Bowl

[TMC1982]

The day that the Super Bowl moves to cable (and don't give me this "ESPN on ABC" garbage, it's still ABC Sports to me damnit) is the day that the big game is no longer relevant:
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/09/04/pm-corner-office-bodenheimer/

Ryssdal: Are we ever going to see ESPN doing the Super Bowl?
Bodenheimer: I certainly wouldn't rule it out. I mean, if we'd had done this interview 15 years ago and you had asked me, "Do you see ESPN with the Masters, with the British Open, with the BCS championship, with Monday Night Football?" I probably would've given you a similar answer. So I'm ruling nothing out.

 

[Immortalfire]

That would be horrible

:facepalm

 

[cyborg ninja 14]

No.

 

[LegendaryCaleb]

this would be awful.

 

[StorminNorman]

I don't understand why the Super Bowl would do it, but it would hardly be a disaster and to say it would make the Super Bowl "irrelevant" is comedic.

 

[TMC1982]

I don't understand why the Super Bowl would do it, but it would hardly be a disaster and to say it would make the Super Bowl "irrelevant" is comedic.

To try to put things in a proper perspective on why the Super Bowl being on ESPN would be a bad idea. The Super Bowl is traditionally, one of the highest rated telecasts of the year. There's a reason why in the current NFL TV contract, NBC has the rights to the early round, Wild Card playoff games (not to mention alternating in the Super Bowl rights with only CBS and FOX) instead of ESPN. It's because, the NFL wants to maximize the audience as best as possible. Even though, ESPN is currently available in over 100 million households, the bottomline is still that the biggest game of the year has always been on regular, free television. ESPN's whole MO is to get as many big events as possible so that they can justify charging the cable companies a hefty sum to carry ESPN. Look for instance, what's happening right now with Versus' feud with DirecTV.

 

[StorminNorman]

To try to put things in a proper perspective on why the Super Bowl being on ESPN would be a bad idea. The Super Bowl is traditionally, one of the highest rated telecasts of the year. There's a reason why in the current NFL TV contract, NBC has the rights to the early round, Wild Card playoff games (not to mention alternating in the Super Bowl rights with only CBS and FOX) instead of ESPN. It's because, the NFL wants to maximize the audience as best as possible. Even though, ESPN is currently available in over 100 million households, the bottomline is still that the biggest game of the year has always been on regular, free television. ESPN's whole MO is to get as many big events as possible so that they can justify charging the cable companies a hefty sum to carry ESPN. Look for instance, what's happening right now with Versus' feud with DirecTV.

Yea, I get that. I don't understand why the NFL would want the Super Bowl on ESPN - but the idea that it would ruin the Super Bowl is asinine.
The number of people that watch the Super Bowl and don't have ESPN isn't large enough to mean anything to the game or the celebration around it. I honestly don't even think the ratings would be altered that much.

 

[rdh007]

If the Super Bowl were on ESPN, I wouldn't watch.[/Fanboy]

 

[Shifty]

They can broadcast the Super Bowl that takes place in England.

 

[enterthemadness]

SuperBowl on ESPN would be nice. ESPN stands for Sports, guys. They just...well, are too mainstream now and kinda suck. They basically need a overhaul behind the scenes.

although you can never go wrong with Sports Center top 10 plays and Not Top 10 plays.

 

[\S/JcDc\S/]

Eww... Of course I like CBS coverage even less *shudders*

 

[TMC1982]

I have little respect for George Bodenheimer because he helped turn ABC Sports into the complete and utter joke that it is today. He is the biggest champion of the garbage known as "ESPN on ABC". And all that he's spouting is delusional, ultra grandiose nonsense about ESPN broadcasting a Super Bowl down the line.

ESPN was once a great channel (up until, the time that Disney came into the picture during the late 1990s). But like MTV, they started to believe their own hype. In the process, they've really lost a lot of their heart.

 

[\S/JcDc\S/]

I like ESPN as a whole. Sportscenter, PTI, Around the Horn, 1st and 10 are all regular shows for me.

However their football coverage just always seems a bit... well cheap. The production just isn't where it needs to be. For that reason I can't see them hosting the Superbowl.

 

[Fresh Prince]

I like ESPN as a whole. Sportscenter, PTI, Around the Horn, 1st and 10 are all regular shows for me.

However their football coverage just always seems a bit... well cheap. The production just isn't where it needs to be. For that reason I can't see them hosting the Superbowl.

How doestheir football coverage sound cheap?

They too talk about Brett Favre way too many times.

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

I have little respect for George Bodenheimer because he helped turn ABC Sports into the complete and utter joke that it is today. He is the biggest champion of the garbage known as "ESPN on ABC". And all that he's spouting is delusional, ultra grandiose nonsense about ESPN broadcasting a Super Bowl down the line.

ESPN was once a great channel (up until, the time that Disney came into the picture during the late 1990s). But like MTV, they started to believe their own hype. In the process, they've really lost a lot of their heart.

It still is... Just because ESPN became bigger does not make it a bad channel. Many great sports shows came this decade:

Mike and Mike in the Morning
Pardon the Interuption
Around the Horn (Even though those guys mostly talking out their a$$)
Jim Rome is Burning
ESPN First Take

and there are many more great things about ESPN. You cannot compare it to MTV at all. ESPN still shows sports 24 hours a day (except when poker's on lol) and almost nothing else (except when poker's on).

Still with that saying: Would I want them to host a Super Bowl? No. You reach more audiences with local networks and my some of my friends don't have cable.

 

[Fresh Prince]

It still is... Just because ESPN became bigger does not make it a bad channel. Many great sports shows came this decade:

Mike and Mike in the Morning
Pardon the Interuption
Around the Horn (Even though those guys mostly talking out their a$$)
Jim Rome is Burning
ESPN First Take

and there are many more great things about ESPN. You cannot compare it to MTV at all. ESPN still shows sports 24 hours a day (except when poker's on lol) and almost nothing else (except when poker's on).

Still with that saying: Would I want them to host a Super Bowl? No. You reach more audiences with local networks and my some of my friends don't have cable.

Nothing as bad as MTV. They had the crap reality tv shows, VMA and MTV Movie Awards. All are garbage programming.

 

[Mrs. Sawyer]

Nothing as bad as MTV. They had the crap reality tv shows, VMA and MTV Movie Awards. All are garbage programming.

Yeah, that why I'm glad they're not involved with the Super Bowl anymore. Thank you Janet!

 

[StorminNorman]

It still is... Just because ESPN became bigger does not make it a bad channel. Many great sports shows came this decade:

Mike and Mike in the Morning
Pardon the Interuption
Around the Horn (Even though those guys mostly talking out their a$$)
Jim Rome is Burning
ESPN First Take

and there are many more great things about ESPN. You cannot compare it to MTV at all. ESPN still shows sports 24 hours a day (except when poker's on lol) and almost nothing else (except when poker's on).

Still with that saying: Would I want them to host a Super Bowl? No. You reach more audiences with local networks and my some of my friends don't have cable.

PTI, ATH and Rome are the only good shows you listed.

 

[NotFadeAway]

I would love to see the ESPN pre-game/post-game crew and announce team get a shot at broadcasting a Super Bowl, but not on ESPN.

The ESPN and CBS crews are my favorites, while I'm indifferent toward Fox and I HATE everything about the NBC crew.

 

[StorminNorman]

Collinsworth for Madden may be the worst trade since Moss for a 4th round draft pick.

 

[Raiden]

PTI, ATH and Rome are the only good shows you listed.

I like many of the ESPN programming. On the other hand, I can't think of one I really like on Fox Sports channel, not even TGSSP.

 

[TMC1982]

I'm bumping this in response to the news of the Monday Night Football game between Brett Farve and the Vikings and the Packers setting a new cable ratings record:

“Last night’s record-setting performance clearly demonstrates that big events on ESPN deliver big audiences with content across all our platforms,” said ESPN President George Bodenheimer. “In its 40th Monday Night Football remains a special place to showcase the NFL’s best.”

 

[BlackLantern]

it was a good night for ESPN

 

[Fresh Prince]

NBC is fine for football games, FOX however has bad qualities and just a pain watching games in their.

 

[TMC1982]

http://www.fangsbites.com/2009/10/monday-night-football-ratings-are-what.html

Monday Night Football - First Sports Franchise Honored by Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame
Tonight in New York, Monday Night Football will become the first sports franchise recognized by the Broadcast & Cable Hall of Fame at the 19th Annual Hall of Fame Awards Dinner. The premier industry event that pays tribute to the pioneers, innovators and stars of the electronic arts will present this prestigious honor to MNF, which is celebrating its 40th season as one of America’s greatest and longest-running television franchises. ESPN President George Bodenheimer will accept the award, joined by MNF broadcasting legend and Pro Football Hall of Famer Frank Gifford and current MNF play-by-play voice Mike Tirico. Many of those who have contributed to the success of MNF in the past four decades will also be in attendance. The Hall of Fame event will be hosted by Brian Williams of NBC Nightly News. Last year’s B&C series honoree was CBS’s 60 Minutes, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008.

Personally, if anybody should be worthy accept the award, it should be Frank Gifford, Don Meridith, Dan Dierdorf (even though, he now works at CBS) and/or Al Michaels (even though, he now works at NBC). I don't want George Bodenheimer to be trying to piggyback on the legacy of MNF. He just happened to be in charge (of both ESPN and ABC Sports, excuse me, ESPN on ABC during all of this) when Disney decided that it was more economically agreeable to transfer the series from ABC to cable. Monday Night Football stopped being relevant (in my estimation) the day that it left ABC. Sunday Night Football on NBC is now the marquee NFL game of the week. MNF now is just "another game" (or an afterthought) for ESPN to overhype for the week.