Greg Olsen called Sunday's NFC Championship Game that featured a historic comeback and two questionable coaching decisions that drew nearly 57 million viewers — making it the fourth most-watched non-Super Bowl telecast in Fox history.
This will likely be Olsen's last game as the network's lead analyst. With Tom Brady joining the network, Olsen seems to be the odd man out, despite overwhelmingly positive reviews from fans and media pundits.
“This is the way it looks, from everything we've been told and this is the way it's been trending. We've been planning this for two years. We knew when we took the job that Brady was there whenever he decided to come in,” Olsen said Tuesday during a phone interview. “.
“But the one thing I will say is I'm very proud of what we've done for two years. I don't know if any crew — from (Kevin) Burkhart to Erin (Andrews) and Tom (Rinaldi) to our producer, our whole truck — I don't know if anyone is producing a ball game Do better than us.
Olsen, the former Carolina Panthers player, said he plans to look at “a whole range of opportunities” with Fox and other networks. But he appreciates that Fox gave him his start in broadcasting with a pair of opportunities while he was still playing, and then as a full-time analyst in 2021.
“Fox (the decision makers) are the ones who believed in me from the beginning. They gave me my first chance to do that when I was still playing in 2017 on my bye week. “No one was as adamant about my future in this business as Fox. I will be forever grateful for that.”
Olsen, 38, who lives in Charlotte, said his goal remains the same when he breaks into broadcasting — to call big games like Super Bowls and Sunday's NFC title game between the San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions.
“It's hard to predict how this will all happen,” Olsen said. “But my ultimate goal is to make the premierships at the top of the ladder and that quest will not change no matter what happens next year with my current role.”
Brady said he plans to begin his broadcasting career with Fox in the fall of 2024. His deal is reportedly a 10-year, $375 million contract to join Fox as an anchor.
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Olsen thrived in the booth
Remarkably, Sunday could have been Olsen's last game as the No. 1 short-term analyst, but that's likely the case. He's put on a clinic over the past two seasons when it comes to being in the shadow of Brady, the heir-in-waiting to the No. 1 analyst chair on Fox's top NFL team. We've never seen a legitimate #1 sports broadcast analyst on the job when we know his replacement has been hired to take over at a time to be determined.
In 2022 to broadcast NFL musical chairs, Troy Aikman left Fox to join ESPN, eventually followed by longtime partner Joe Buck. That sparked the team-up of Olsen and Burkhart after the two found great chemistry on Fox's No. 2 NFL team. They've grown into great listening, had a great Super Bowl broadcast, and each week Olsen offers viewers a unique look on the field thanks to his game vision as a tight end and his deep preparation during the week (which the Fox NFL staff confirms).
what happened after that? Fox has not provided any details on what they have planned for 2024, but Brady has repeatedly said he will join the network for the 2024 season, and Fox Sports has worked with the understanding that the job will be Brady's when he arrives. A Fox Sports spokesperson declined to comment Sunday on specific talent assignments for the 2024 NFL season. “The network will disclose its full production/talent plans going forward as it does before each season,” the spokesperson said. — Richard Deitch, senior sports writer
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