BRISTOL, Conn. — Jerry Jones' Cowboys have not won a Super Bowl in more than 20 years. But Dallas' team owner is tickled pink about the way ex-Cowboys players dominate NFL broadcast booths.
With former tight end Jason Witten taking over as game analyst on ESPN's "Monday Night Football" this season, former Cowboys players will hold three of the four primary NFL TV analyst positions — Witten at ESPN, ex-quarterback Tony Romo at CBS Sports and three-time Super Bowl-winning QB Troy Aikman at Fox Sports.
When Sporting News asked Witten about the Cowboys' TV dominance, he confirmed Jones is "loving it." But it's bad news for recently retired NFL players like Joe Thomas who have to audition against the stars from Dallas.
"I think Jerry is really enjoying having his guys on that stage," Witten said during a press conference at ESPN's headquarters.
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Of the four primary NFL game analysts, the only person who's not an ex-Cowboy is former Bengals star Cris Collinsworth on NBC's "Sunday Night Football."
That doesn't include the other former Cowboys employed across NFL TV — Michael Irvin, Deion Sanders and DeMarcus Ware at NFL Network; Jimmy Johnson and Daryl Johnston at Fox; and Darren Woodson at ESPN. Not to mention the original Cowboy QB behind the mic, "Dandy" Don Meredith, who served in the original "MNF" booth with Howard Cosell and Keith Jackson, and then with Frank Gifford.
The reason ex-Cowboys get the best TV jobs starts with the team's rabid, nationwide fan base. The NFL's TV partners practically pull knives on each over the rights to air Cowboys games. Win or lose, Dallas' games draw the highest ratings on TV, one of the reasons why the Cowboys lead Forbes' list of most valuable sports teams ($4.8 billion). The average NFL franchise is worth around $2.5 billion.
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Then there's the Cowboys' history of TV success. Witten noted how Romo was the toast of NFL viewers last season. In his rookie year on TV, and despite working many back-to-back Thursday-Sunday games, Romo approached the position in a fresh way not seen since the great John Madden. Aikman has served as Fox's critically acclaimed No. 1 analyst for 16 years, calling five Super Bowls with partner Joe Buck. The late Meredith was a TV icon, too.
During his meeting with the press, Witten was suitably humble about following in their footsteps. He admitted to having the "jitters" before his first preseason telecast. He said he sought advice from Romo, Kirk Herbstreit and former "MNF" analyst-turned-Raiders coach Jon Gruden.
"That franchise, the market for it is so broad," Witten said of the Cowboys. "I also think Don Meredith had a lot of success. Troy (Aikman) came in and had a lot of success. Really gave us a great opportunity."
Some think ESPN hired Witten as an olive branch to the NFL and to Jones, one of the league's most powerful owners. ESPN has had a strained relationship with the league in recent years, which, in part, has led to some lousy "MNF" scheduling. During his talk last week, new ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro said improving the relationship with the NFL was priority No. 1.
But Stephanie Druley, ESPN's senior vice president of event and studio production, said Witten was the best candidate for the job. Druley led the months-long internal search and audition process. Like New York Yankees, she said, Cowboys players are subject to a daily media grind that prepares them for the TV chair.
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Noted Druly: "Look, I ran the NFL studio shows for a long time. The question on Monday morning was, 'What are we doing on the Cowboys?'
"So it's a constant churn of all networks. All broadcast partners are in there and are asking for those key guys all the time. So they're media-trained, essentially."