Super Bowl 2021 Could Be Jim Nantz’s Last With CBS

Tony Romo and Jim Nantz

Sunday will be the second Super Bowl Jim Nantz calls with ex-Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. It will be Nantz’s sixth Super Bowl overall with CBS Sports. And it could be his last.

Front Office Sports reports “The impasse in contract negotiations between Super Bowl broadcaster Jim Nantz and CBS Sports is attracting the attention of a big possible bidder: ESPN. If Nantz hits free agency this summer, ESPN is interested in possibly making him the face of its NFL and Masters golf coverage, said sources. With ESPN parent Walt Disney Co. poised to land one — if not two — NFL TV packages, Nantz could be on the mic as ABC/ESPN broadcast future Super Bowls.”

According to nj.com, the 61-year-old Nantz, whose deal is up in less than a year, is more than just a football voice for CBS. 

As CBS’s top play-by-play announcer for the NFL, PGA Tour/Masters and NCAA basketball, Nantz has won three Emmys and been named National Sportscaster of the Year five times since joining the network in 1985.

When reached for a comment, a CBS Sports spokesperson said “We expect Jim to be at CBS Sports for many years to come.” But complicating matters is this nugget from the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand: “Nantz seeks the same sort of contract as his Super Bowl partner, Tony Romo’s 10-season, $180 million deal.”

Hedging its bets, CBS recently re-signed Ian Eagle, the No. 2 NFL play-by-play announcer at CBS. Per Marchand: “The exact terms of Eagle’s new deal are not known, but it is said to be longer than a standard three-year contract.”