Jon Gruden returned to the broadcast booth for the first time since 2018 during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 16-15 preseason win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday night, pairing with Ronde Barber in a nontraditional setup that featured dual analysis rather than conventional play-by-play.
The Athletic reports Gruden, filling in on WFLA-TV because regular play-by-play announcer Chris Myers was assigned to Fox’s IndyCar Freedom 250, worked as the color analyst while Barber handled most of the down-and-distance calls, action setup and break transitions. The result was a somewhat disjointed broadcast that leaned heavily into commentary, resembling the “ManningCast,” with Gruden’s offensive expertise complementing Barber’s defensive insights.
“I was nervous, I’ll be honest with you,” Gruden said in a postgame segment with Barber. “Having a chance to come back in the stadium as a broadcaster, with my Hall of Fame man, I mean, I really was a basket case.”
Barber noted the extra workload: “My week wasn’t as calm as it normally is. Usually, I let Chris do all of the heavy lifting. I was like, ‘We got heavy lifting to do.’ But we made it through.”
Earlier in the week on “The Ronde Barber Show,” Gruden suggested the dual-analyst approach could prove innovative.
Having so much fun being back in the booth with the Hall of Famer Ronde Barber! pic.twitter.com/Yku66Tm42R
— Jon Gruden (@BarstoolGruden) August 23, 2026
“You never know. This concept could be a game-changer in the broadcast booth,” he said. “I mean, there’s been a conventional way. I sat up there for nine years and did it. (Play-by-play announcer) Mike Tirico, there was a cadence … But I think as long as we’re on the same page, we love the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We’re going to try to really educate the fans on some of the position battles, just the excitement of opening day in our stadium.”
Gruden’s previous booth experience came after successful head-coaching stints with the Raiders and Buccaneers. He replaced Tony Kornheiser as the “Monday Night Football” color analyst, became one of ESPN’s highest-paid personalities and spent nine years in the role before leaving in 2018 to coach the then-Oakland Raiders.
“I had a lot of fun doing it for nine years,” Gruden said at the August news conference. “I was very fortunate on ‘Monday Night Football,’ especially the years with Tirico. We had a lot of fun, and we took every game like it was the Super Bowl. We took it very seriously and had a lot of fun.”