NFL on Westwood One
Encyclopedia
The NFL on Westwood One is the brand name given to weekly National Football League
games carried on the radio over the Dial Global
Radio Network. It, along with other CBS Radio Sports programming that is currently produced by Dial Global, is the lone remaining element of the former Westwood One
to actively retain the "Westwood One" brand over the air.
The NFL on Westwood One package includes two weekly Sunday afternoon games, the Sunday Night Football
game, the Monday Night Football
game, the Thanksgiving Day games
, Thursday Night Football (beginning in 2006
), any late-season Friday and Saturday night games, the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game
, the season-opening NFL Kickoff Game
, all playoff
games, the Super Bowl
, and the Pro Bowl
. These games are distributed throughout the United States
, Canada
(via TSN Radio
), and (via BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra) the United Kingdom
. (For special events such as the NFL International Series
and the Super Bowl, the BBC uses its own announcers.)
. CBS' parent company
owned the network for approximately ten years (1998–2008) and, through the CBS Radio Network
, maintained control of the production of certain programming, including NFL games, an arrangement that has continued following Westwood One's acquisition by Dial Global
.
As such, there is often synergy
between the NFL on Westwood One and its former sister outlet, the NFL on CBS
.
The current theme music
for The NFL on Westwood One is "Posthumus Zone" by E.S. Posthumus
, the same theme music currently used for the NFL on CBS television coverage (Westwood One's sports coverage had always used the appropriate CBS television theme for their sport where applicable).
Some personnel is shared between the two units; for instance, certain CBS play-by-play announcers (e.g. Don Criqui
, Dick Enberg
and Ian Eagle
) call select Sunday afternoon games throughout the first several weeks of the season on CBS and then switch to Thursday and Saturday night games
on Westwood One. Boomer Esiason
, who is an analyst for CBS' The NFL Today
, calls color commentary on Westwood One's Monday Night Football (and will often advertise the latter on the former, as "the Monday night game on Westwood One"); conversely, Steve Tasker
, a color commentator for CBS's Sunday afternoon coverage, serves as an analyst on The NFL on Westwood One shows.
The coverage carried the CBS Radio Sports tag (both with and without "Westwood One") for many years before switching to Westwood One. The Mutual Broadcasting System
, purchased by Westwood One in 1985, also aired NFL coverage for many years, while NBC Radio, purchased by Westwood One in 1987, had exclusive NFL coverage
in 1985-86. Westwood One now acknowledges the NBC Radio broadcasts as part of the entire history of the network's football coverage.
Westwood One also served as the distributor for the Sports USA
network's NFL games; as such, Westwood One employed Sports USA announcers for certain games covered by the former network, including Thanksgiving Classic games, the opening Monday night doubleheader, and Wild Card Weekend, during the 2009 and 2010 seasons. This agreement was terminated in the 2011 offseason.
instead).
paired with Tony Boselli
and Kevin Kugler
paired with Mark Malone
. David and Kugler have been the voices of Sunday doubleheaders since 2009, with David joining to replace Bill Rosinski
(who departed for ESPN Radio) and Kugler joining to replace Harry Kalas
(who died). David had previously been Sports USA's lead NFL voice and Kugler had been Westwood One's lead voice for college football and basketball. Boselli replaced Dan Reeves
, who left Westwood One after the 2009 season, as David's analyst for 2010 and previously called games for Fox. Malone joined the broadcast team in 2007 to replace Trev Alberts
, the former ESPN college football analyst who is now the athletic director for the University of Nebraska at Omaha
.
Scott Graham
hosts pregame and halftime shows in the studio; he took over the positions from Tommy Tighe
in 2009.
who departed for a college football play-by-play position at ESPN
.
For the 2006 season
, NBC
co-produced NFL Sunday and turned it into an abbreviated radio version of its Football Night in America
TV pregame, complete with the John Williams
-composed NBC Sunday Night Football
theme song. Al Trautwig
started the season as host of the show, but was replaced by Graham in the middle of the season. The format of NBC NFL Sunday (as the show was called) was slightly different from the format the show used before and after. In addition to the usual format one of the analysts from Football Night in America would appear every week to offer analysis of the game ahead.
, who called the games from 1987
to 1990
. Howard David
took over the role in 1991
and continued through 1995
. The following season David was promoted by the network to the Monday Night Football crew, and CBS Radio replaced him with (at the time) former Dallas Cowboys
announcer Brad Sham
, who had worked at the network in the past (and still does today) as a secondary play-by-play man.
After the 1997 season
, Sham returned to the Cowboys. The network hired Joel Meyers
to replace him, and he would hold the position through the end of the 2005 season
.
Dave Sims
is the current voice of Sunday Night Football, replacing Meyers permanently after subbing for him when his other broadcasting endeavors, including play-by-play for the Los Angeles Lakers
, San Antonio Spurs
, and Big 12 Conference
college football
on Fox Sports Net
, rendered him unavailable. Prior to that, Sims was one of two main broadcasters on the featured doubleheader earlier on Sunday. Howard David subs for Sims on games he can't call due to other commitments.
and Pat Haden
. This arrangement was in place due to the fact that television coverage of Sunday Night Football was split at the time between TNT and ESPN
, with Haden serving as TNT's color analyst for their coverage and moving over to the radio side once his obligations with TNT were fulfilled. Other color commentators include Bob Trumpy
, who served as Sunday Night Football analyst from 2000–2004 and again from 2006–2007; John Riggins
, who was the color man for the 2005 season; Jim Fassel
, who was 2008's analyst; and James Lofton
, who replaced Fassel in 2009 after he left for a head coaching job in the United Football League.
), the CBS Radio/Westwood One coverage of Monday Night Football was anchored by Jack Buck
on play-by-play, with former Kansas City Chiefs
coach Hank Stram
alongside him in the color position. They stayed paired together for nearly every major game covered by the network from 1978 until Super Bowl XIX
in January 1985. Since Westwood One now regards NBC Radio
's coverage of Monday Night Football as part of its broadcast history Stram and Buck were regarded as temporarily replaced by Don Criqui
and Bob Trumpy
for the two years NBC Radio held the contract. Buck and Stram returned to the booth at the beginning of the 1987 season and stayed there until the end of the 1995 season, with Super Bowl XXX
in January 1996 marking their final game as a broadcast team after sixteen total seasons on radio.
During their time as Monday Night Football lead broadcast team both Buck and Stram worked on the television side as well. Stram had served as a color commentator on The NFL on CBS
prior to joining Buck on the radio and continued to do so from 1978 until CBS lost the rights to the NFL in 1993. Buck rejoined the CBS television coverage as a play-by-play man in 1982 (after having called games for the network from 1964 to 1974) and remained there until 1987. The duo worked together as a television broadcast team in 1982, 1983, and 1985.
, Westwood One promoted Howard David
from the Sunday Night Football broadcast and moved Matt Millen
, who at the time was a color commentator for Fox
and a contributor to the Westwood One Monday night pregame show, into the booth alongside him. Beginning in 1998 and continuing until 2001 David served as the play-by-play voice of the New York Jets
for WFAN
and later WABC
, and would require a substitute when the Jets played on Monday night or in the playoffs. An example of the latter came in the 1998
NFC Championship Game
; John Rooney
substituted for an absent David in Minneapolis for Westwood One as he called that year's AFC Championship Game
for WFAN.
Boomer Esiason
joined David and Millen for the 2000 season after being fired by ABC from the Monday Night Football telecast. It was the last season in the booth for Millen as he departed to take a position as President of the Detroit Lions
, a job which he received great crticism in and was eventually fired from in 2008.
In 2001
David and Esiason were joined by CBS Sports' veteran reporter Lesley Visser
, who became the first woman to be an analyst on an NFL broadcast. The pairing only lasted the one season, as Visser decided to leave the booth to focus on her reporting for both CBS and HBO. It was also David's last season calling games for Westwood One until his 2009 return, as he became a full-time sports talk show host in Miami and the voice of the Miami Dolphins
beginning in 2002.
Westwood One chose veteran broadcaster Marv Albert
, who had last called NFL games for NBC
in 1997 and was best known for his NBA broadcasting for NBC, TNT, and (at the time) the New York Knicks
. Esiason stayed on to be his color commentator. Since Esiason also joined The NFL Today
broadcast team for the 2002 season and CBS (at the time) traveled to the site of the AFC Championship Game, Albert and Esiason became the exclusive voices of the game. To accomplish this Esiason would call the end of each half with a wireless microphone so he could save time to go to the field level set CBS used for these games. Esiason has also done this in years CBS has carried the Super Bowl, but has not done this for the AFC Championship game since the 2005 game in Denver as CBS has not traveled to the AFC Championship since.
Beginning in 2007, due to his current job as morning host for WFAN, Esiason has required substitute announcers for games that require significant travel from his New York home. For the first two years of this arrangement various guest announcers would fill Esiason's place alongside Albert. Beginning in 2009 Westwood One appointed Kevin Harlan
and Warren Moon
to serve as the backup broadcast team, with Harlan substituting for Albert on games he was unable to make due to other commitments and Moon substituting for Esiason when travel to the game was an issue.
The pairing ended following the 2009 NFL season, with Albert's last call being Super Bowl XLIV
in Miami. On June 4, 2010, Albert announced that he was leaving Westwood One to focus on his NBA broadcasting duties for TNT and the YES Network
.
served as Esiason's substitute for select games, while Wayne Larrivee
filled in on play-by-play when Harlan was unavailable. In 2011, Dan Fouts
will serve as Esiason's substitute for select games.
presides over both the pregame and halftime shows, which are more feature driven and often feature guest commentators such as Mike Ditka
, who contributes to the pregame show weekly with predictions and commentary. In addition to the Monday night games, Gray also hosts the studio shows for the Thursday opening game and the Super Bowl.
There is currently no official sideline reporter for Monday Night Football on Westwood One. John Dockery
served as sideline reporter from 1999 to 2007.
.
(as well as consolidating its Saturday action into one game), Westwood One has added the Run to the Playoffs
games to its coverage.
Ian Eagle
called Westwood One's Thursday Night Football games in 2008 and 2009. In 2010, Eagle will be joined by Trent Green
. He was previously joined by Dennis Green
in 2008 and Randy Cross
in 2009 as color analysts. Green also served as the analyst in 2007, and left to take a head coaching job in the United Football League.
Dick Enberg
served as Westwood One's Thursday Night Football voice from 2006–2007, with Sam Wyche
as his analyst for the 2006 season. Don Criqui
and Joel Meyers
served as play-by-play men for Saturday Night Football, with Marv Albert calling the lone Saturday game in 2008.
and Dennis Green
(from the Thursday night crew) called one of the wild card games, and Marv Albert called games alongside Jim Fassel
from the Sunday doubleheader team. In 2009, the teams were even more mixed- for example, Marv Albert called an opening round game with Dennis Green and a divisional playoff game with Warren Moon
.
Typically, the first time the main crews are together comes during conference championship weekend. Since Esiason has become a member of The NFL Today cast he and Albert will call the AFC Championship Game (in years that CBS broadcasts from the game site and in addition to their duties as Super Bowl broadcasters) while the Sunday Night Football team will be responsible for the NFC Championship Game. Since 2006
, however, CBS has not chosen to travel to the sites of the AFC Championship Game. In the first of those two seasons Albert called the 2007 game in Indianapolis alongside Sam Wyche
.
In 2008, neither Albert nor Esiason was available on championship weekend, so Dave Sims and Bob Trumpy moved to the AFC Championship game in New England while Bill Rosinski took Albert's place alongside Jim Fassel for the NFC Championship game in Green Bay. For 2009, Albert returned to the booth for championship Sunday, calling the NFC Championship game alongside Fassel with Dave Sims and Dennis Green responsible for the AFC Championship game. The 2010 conference championship games saw Kevin Harlan
and Warren Moon call the AFC championship game while Sims and James Lofton called the NFC championship game.
A second program, NFL Insider, runs from the beginning of the season through to the Super Bowl, is a program hosted by Sunday doubleheader analysts Mark Malone and Dan Reeves and CBS television's Steve Tasker
, where the hosts provide analysis of the week, present highlights of the previous week's action, and interview players and coaches.
Boomer Esiason hosts an NFL preview show every week (appropriately called NFL Preview), where he and Scott Graham analyze each game in depth and provide information about what players and other factors will play roles in the upcoming week. This program runs through Super Bowl Sunday and is thirty minutes in length, but runs for an hour leading into the Super Bowl.
Graham and Esiason also present a live radio version of The NFL Today
every Sunday morning.
2006 pairings
2007 pairings
2008 pairings
2009 pairings
2010 pairings
2011 pairings
and other languages) can transmit the team's local radio broadcast, although the local broadcasts are also available on Sirius Satellite Radio
and NFL Audio Pass
. An exception is made for the Green Bay Packers
because they technically have flagships in two separate cities, WTAQ-FM/AM and WIXX (FM) in Green Bay
and WTMJ
in Milwaukee
; the latter station has produced Packers radio broadcasts for many years. If the local Westwood One affiliate is not the same as the corresponding affiliate of the team, the Westwood One station retains broadcast rights and the team's station must switch to alternate programming (for example, KSPN
in Los Angeles
aired an alternate feed of ESPN Radio
on January 20, 2008 when the San Diego Chargers
played in the AFC Championship Game, as exclusive rights belonged to KLAC, the Chargers' L.A. flagship.)
For all other weeks, within 75 miles of a team's stadium, only stations the team or its flagship station contracts with can carry those games, regardless if the team is home or away. Thus, any competing station that carries Westwood One broadcasts cannot air those games- for instance, any time the New York Jets
are playing on Sunday or Monday nights, their games do not air on New York City
's Westwood One affiliate, WFAN
, but instead WABC
and WEPN
(the Jets' flagships) retain local exclusivity. (In the case of the Sunday doubleheaders, most stations can opt for an alternate national broadcast from the Sports USA Radio Network
or, beginning in 2009, Compass Media Networks
.) This rule applies to Toronto, Canada whenever the Buffalo Bills
play nationally. (However, in the case of Toronto, the same station affiliates with both the Bills radio network
and Westwood One, which means the only difference is which broadcast team the station uses). For a time, the rule applied to the Los Angeles market, but it was relaxed in 2008 and all national radio broadcasts are now available in that market on KLAC (Westwood One) and KFWB (Sports USA Radio).
A similar rule applies to Westwood One's NHL
coverage, although the NHL's radius is much smaller, and in some markets (such as Rochester, New York), local broadcasts and national broadcasts have aired on competing stations.
The NFL on Westwood One originally was not available on the NFL Audio Pass
(formerly Field Pass) subscription Internet radio service, though the network's prime time and playoff broadcasts became available beginning in the 2009 NFL season
as a result of a new broadcast contract.
In December 2008, it was reported that the NFL was considering leaving Westwood One for a rival service (ESPN Radio
, Sports USA
, and Sporting News Radio
being the contenders), or possibly splitting rights for prime-time, Thanksgiving, and postseason games between two or more networks. However, on March 12, 2009 it was announced that Westwood One had signed a two-year extension with the NFL. The league then announced on December 22, 2010 that Westwood One's contract has been extended through 2014.
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
games carried on the radio over the Dial Global
Dial Global
Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management....
Radio Network. It, along with other CBS Radio Sports programming that is currently produced by Dial Global, is the lone remaining element of the former Westwood One
Westwood One
Westwood One was an American radio network and was based in New York City. At one time, it was managed by CBS Radio, the radio arm of CBS Corporation, and Viacom and was later purchased by the private equity firm The Gores Group...
to actively retain the "Westwood One" brand over the air.
The NFL on Westwood One package includes two weekly Sunday afternoon games, the Sunday Night Football
NBC Sunday Night Football
NBC Sunday Night Football is a weekly television broadcast of Sunday evening National Football League games on NBC that began airing on Sunday, August 6, 2006 with the pre-season opening Hall of Fame Game. Al Michaels serves as the play-by-play announcer, with Cris Collinsworth as the color...
game, the Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football
Monday Night Football is a live broadcast of the National Football League on ESPN. From to it aired on ABC. Monday Night Football was, along with Hallmark Hall of Fame, and the Walt Disney anthology television series, one of the longest running prime time commercial network television series...
game, the Thanksgiving Day games
Thanksgiving Classic
The National Football League's Thanksgiving Classic is a series of games played during the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States. It has been a regular occurrence since the league's inception in 1920. Since 2006, three games are played every Thanksgiving...
, Thursday Night Football (beginning in 2006
2006 NFL season
The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League.Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006...
), any late-season Friday and Saturday night games, the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game
Pro Football Hall of Fame Game
The Pro Football Hall of Game is an annual National Football League exhibition game that is held the weekend of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's induction ceremonies. The game is played at Fawcett Stadium, which is located next door to the Hall of Fame building in Canton, Ohio...
, the season-opening NFL Kickoff Game
National Football League Kickoff game
The NFL Kickoff game, and related festivities, mark the start of the National Football League season. The first game of the season is currently scheduled for the Thursday following Labor Day. A single game is held, preceded by a concert and other ceremonies. Since the 2004 season, the defending...
, all playoff
NFL playoffs
The National Football League playoffs are a single-elimination tournament held at the end of the regular season to determine the NFL champion. Six teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs based on regular season records, and a tie-breaking procedure exists in the...
games, the Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
, and the Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
. These games are distributed throughout the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
(via TSN Radio
TSN Radio
TSN Radio is a semi-national sports radio network in Canada carried on AM radio stations owned by Bell Media's Bell Media Radio division. The TSN Radio brand, and much of the network's content, is partially shared with Bell Media's television sports channel, The Sports Network...
), and (via BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra) the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. (For special events such as the NFL International Series
NFL International Series
Beginning with the 2005 season, the National Football League has hosted regular season American football games held outside the United States in a series known as the International Series.-Background:...
and the Super Bowl, the BBC uses its own announcers.)
Relationship to CBS
The former Westwood One had a long-standing relationship with CBS RadioCBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
. CBS' parent company
CBS Corporation
CBS Corporation is an American media conglomerate focused on commercial broadcasting, publishing, billboards and television production, with most of its operations in the United States. The President and CEO of the company is Leslie Moonves. Sumner Redstone, owner of National Amusements, is CBS's...
owned the network for approximately ten years (1998–2008) and, through the CBS Radio Network
CBS Radio Network
The CBS Radio Network provides news, sports and other programming to more than 1,000 radio stations throughout the United States. The network is owned by CBS Corporation, and operated by CBS Radio ....
, maintained control of the production of certain programming, including NFL games, an arrangement that has continued following Westwood One's acquisition by Dial Global
Dial Global
Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management....
.
As such, there is often synergy
Synergy
Synergy may be defined as two or more things functioning together to produce a result not independently obtainable.The term synergy comes from the Greek word from , , meaning "working together".-Definitions and usages:...
between the NFL on Westwood One and its former sister outlet, the NFL on CBS
NFL on CBS
The NFL on CBS is the brand name of the CBS television network's coverage of the National Football League's American Football Conference games, produced by CBS Sports.-Market coverage and television policies:...
.
The current theme music
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
for The NFL on Westwood One is "Posthumus Zone" by E.S. Posthumus
E.S. Posthumus
Unearthed, the first album composed by E.S. Posthumus, was originally made available for purchase online through the CD Baby website in January 2001. It became the third-biggest selling album in CDBaby's history...
, the same theme music currently used for the NFL on CBS television coverage (Westwood One's sports coverage had always used the appropriate CBS television theme for their sport where applicable).
Some personnel is shared between the two units; for instance, certain CBS play-by-play announcers (e.g. Don Criqui
Don Criqui
Don Criqui is an American sportscaster, currently employed as a play-by-play announcer for CBS Sports. Criqui's duties include occasional television coverage of National Football League games, women's and men's college basketball, occasional college football and radio play-by-play of ISP Sports'...
, Dick Enberg
Dick Enberg
Richard Alan "Dick" Enberg is an American sportscaster. He currently provides play-by-play for telecasts of San Diego Padres baseball on 4SD, following a long career calling various sports for such networks as NBC, CBS, and ESPN...
and Ian Eagle
Ian Eagle
Ian Eagle is an American sports announcer calling National Football League games on CBS, New Jersey Nets games on the YES Network and hosts Full Court Press, a basketball talk show with former player Kenny Smith on Sirius Satellite Radio...
) call select Sunday afternoon games throughout the first several weeks of the season on CBS and then switch to Thursday and Saturday night games
Run to the Playoffs
Thursday Night Football is the brand name used by NFL Network for its schedule of live regular season telecasts of National Football League games on Thursday nights. Also included in the package are some Saturday specials....
on Westwood One. Boomer Esiason
Boomer Esiason
Norman Julius "Boomer" Esiason is a former American football quarterback and current network color commentator. He played for the National Football League's Cincinnati Bengals, New York Jets, and Arizona Cardinals before working as an analyst for ABC and HBO...
, who is an analyst for CBS' The NFL Today
The NFL Today
The NFL Today is an American sports series that precedes the American football program The NFL on CBS on CBS Sports. The program usually airs at noon on Sundays of the National Football League regular season...
, calls color commentary on Westwood One's Monday Night Football (and will often advertise the latter on the former, as "the Monday night game on Westwood One"); conversely, Steve Tasker
Steve Tasker
Steven Jay Tasker is a broadcaster for CBS Sports, who previously was a wide receiver/gunner in the National Football League. He was drafted in the ninth round of the 1985 NFL Draft by the Houston Oilers. He played college football at Northwestern...
, a color commentator for CBS's Sunday afternoon coverage, serves as an analyst on The NFL on Westwood One shows.
The coverage carried the CBS Radio Sports tag (both with and without "Westwood One") for many years before switching to Westwood One. The Mutual Broadcasting System
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
, purchased by Westwood One in 1985, also aired NFL coverage for many years, while NBC Radio, purchased by Westwood One in 1987, had exclusive NFL coverage
NFL on NBC Radio
From 1985-1986, the NBC Radio Network was the official, national radio provider for National Football League games. The program succeeded the CBS Radio Network's package.-Background:...
in 1985-86. Westwood One now acknowledges the NBC Radio broadcasts as part of the entire history of the network's football coverage.
Westwood One also served as the distributor for the Sports USA
Sports USA Radio Network
The Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League...
network's NFL games; as such, Westwood One employed Sports USA announcers for certain games covered by the former network, including Thanksgiving Classic games, the opening Monday night doubleheader, and Wild Card Weekend, during the 2009 and 2010 seasons. This agreement was terminated in the 2011 offseason.
NFL on Westwood One doubleheader
Each week, The NFL on Westwood One features two games from the Sunday afternoon lineup (one of the 1:00 games and one of the 4:00 games, respectively). These games are not league-endorsed and are broadcast by agreement with individual teams. Dial Global currently has agreements with 23 of the league's 32 teams (of the 9 others, 8 are affiliated with Compass Media NetworksCompass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks is an American radio network.The company launched in January 2009. It is owned by former Westwood One CEO and former COO of Connoisseur Media, Peter Kosann...
instead).
Broadcast teams
The NFL on Westwood One's 2011 Sunday doubleheader broadcast teams consist of Howard DavidHoward David
-Biography:Over the years, David has been the radio play-by-play man for several pro sports teams including the NBA's New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics, and the NFL's New York Jets and Miami Dolphins...
paired with Tony Boselli
Tony Boselli
Don Anthony "Tony" Boselli, Jr. is a former American football offensive tackle. He spent nearly all of his professional career playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League ....
and Kevin Kugler
Kevin Kugler
Kevin Kugler is a radio personality at 1620 the Zone in Omaha, Nebraska, co-host of the afternoon program "Unsportsmanlike Conduct" from 2:00pm to 6:00pm Central Time. He is also the lead play-by-play announcer on the Westwood One/NCAA Radio Network for college football and college basketball. He...
paired with Mark Malone
Mark Malone
Mark M. Malone is a former American football quarterback in the NFL.-Playing career:Malone was the nation's most recruited quarterback in 1975 out of El Cajon Valley High School near San Diego, California...
. David and Kugler have been the voices of Sunday doubleheaders since 2009, with David joining to replace Bill Rosinski
Bill Rosinski
Bill Rosinski is an American sportscaster and talk show host, operating primarily out of Charlotte, North Carolina.Rosinski currently works for ESPN Radio as its lead college football and college basketball commentator, as well as for ISP Sports calling ACC sports...
(who departed for ESPN Radio) and Kugler joining to replace Harry Kalas
Harry Kalas
Harry Norbert Kalas was an American sportscaster, best known for his Ford C. Frick Award-winning role as lead play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies...
(who died). David had previously been Sports USA's lead NFL voice and Kugler had been Westwood One's lead voice for college football and basketball. Boselli replaced Dan Reeves
Dan Reeves
Daniel Edward Reeves is a former American football player and head coach. He has participated in more Super Bowls as player/assistant coach/Head Coach than anyone else...
, who left Westwood One after the 2009 season, as David's analyst for 2010 and previously called games for Fox. Malone joined the broadcast team in 2007 to replace Trev Alberts
Trev Alberts
Trev Kendall Alberts is the director of athletics for the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Before assuming this position, he was an American television and print college football commentator, most notably working alongside Mark May on the ESPN's College GameDay Scoreboard show.-Collegiate:Alberts...
, the former ESPN college football analyst who is now the athletic director for the University of Nebraska at Omaha
University of Nebraska at Omaha
The University of Nebraska at Omaha is a four-year state university located in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. Founded in 1908 as Omaha University, the institution became the public Municipal University of Omaha in 1931. It assumed its current name in 1968 following a merger into the University...
.
Scott Graham
Scott Graham
Scott Graham is an American sportscaster best known for his broadcasts of the Philadelphia Phillies. He has lived and worked near Philadelphia for most of his life. He was born June 10, 1965 in Belleville, New Jersey, and now lives in Voorhees Township, New Jersey. His sportscasting résumé covers...
hosts pregame and halftime shows in the studio; he took over the positions from Tommy Tighe
Tommy Tighe
Tommy Tighe is a sports radio broadcaster who previously worked for the Westwood One radio network. He had been employed by the network since CBS radio days, hired in 1987 as a reporter and a commentator. He currently does work for ESPN Radio as a sportscenter anchor.-Career:Tighe can currently be...
in 2009.
Pregame
Westwood One's coverage of Sunday Night Football begins with their weekly recap show, NFL Sunday. The show beings at 7:30 p.m every Sunday night on most affiliates (in cases where a market is getting the late Westwood One game, the show is joined in progress), with Scott Graham hosting. The show consists of highlights and statistics from the previous games of the day as well as a preview of the upcoming Sunday night game live from the stadium. Graham then anchors the normal Sunday Night Football pregame show until kickoff. Graham has hosted NFL Sunday since he joined Westwood One, replacing Tommy Tighe as he did as studio host; he hosted in 2009 with Jason Horowitz, who replaced Dave LamontDave Lamont
Dave Lamont is an American sports commentator. He formerly hosted South Florida's First News weekday mornings from 5 to 9 on WIOD . He was the ringleader of SFFN and does everything from reporting to getting interactive with listeners. Lamont currently calls college football for ESPN and ABC.Lamont...
who departed for a college football play-by-play position at ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
.
For the 2006 season
2006 NFL season
The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League.Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006...
, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
co-produced NFL Sunday and turned it into an abbreviated radio version of its Football Night in America
Football Night in America
Football Night in America is the studio pregame show usually preceding NBC's broadcasts of Sunday night and Wild Card Saturday National Football League games starting in the 2006 National Football League season...
TV pregame, complete with the John Williams
John Williams
John Towner Williams is an American composer, conductor, and pianist. In a career spanning almost six decades, he has composed some of the most recognizable film scores in the history of motion pictures, including the Star Wars saga, Jaws, Superman, the Indiana Jones films, E.T...
-composed NBC Sunday Night Football
NBC Sunday Night Football
NBC Sunday Night Football is a weekly television broadcast of Sunday evening National Football League games on NBC that began airing on Sunday, August 6, 2006 with the pre-season opening Hall of Fame Game. Al Michaels serves as the play-by-play announcer, with Cris Collinsworth as the color...
theme song. Al Trautwig
Al Trautwig
Al Trautwig is a commentator with the MSG Network, NBC, Versus, and USA Network. He does the pre-game and post-game shows for the New York Knicks and New York Rangers, as well as fill-in play-by-play for both teams.-Early life:...
started the season as host of the show, but was replaced by Graham in the middle of the season. The format of NBC NFL Sunday (as the show was called) was slightly different from the format the show used before and after. In addition to the usual format one of the analysts from Football Night in America would appear every week to offer analysis of the game ahead.
Play-by-play
The play-by-play role for CBS Radio Sports' coverage of Sunday Night Football was originally filled by Jim NantzJim Nantz
James William Nantz, III is an American sportscaster, known primarily for his work with CBS Sports television.-Early life:...
, who called the games from 1987
1987 NFL season
The 1987 NFL season was the 68th regular season of the National Football League. A 24-day players' strike reduced the 16-game season to 15. The games that were scheduled for the third week of the season were canceled, but the games for weeks 4–6 were played with replacement players...
to 1990
1990 NFL season
The 1990 NFL season was the 71st regular season of the National Football League. To increase revenue, the league changed the regular season so that all NFL teams would play their 16-game schedule over a 17-week period...
. Howard David
Howard David
-Biography:Over the years, David has been the radio play-by-play man for several pro sports teams including the NBA's New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics, and the NFL's New York Jets and Miami Dolphins...
took over the role in 1991
1991 NFL season
The 1991 NFL season was the 72nd regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XXVI when the Washington Redskins defeated the Buffalo Bills....
and continued through 1995
1995 NFL season
The 1995 NFL season was the 76th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded to 30 teams with the addition of the Carolina Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars...
. The following season David was promoted by the network to the Monday Night Football crew, and CBS Radio replaced him with (at the time) former Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
announcer Brad Sham
Brad Sham
Brad Michael Sham is an American sportscaster who is known as the "Voice of the Dallas Cowboys". Sham is currently heard on the Dallas Cowboys Radio Network, including the flagship stations 1080 AM KRLD, where Sham held the position of Sports Director between 1976 and 1981; and 105.3 KRLD-FM "The...
, who had worked at the network in the past (and still does today) as a secondary play-by-play man.
After the 1997 season
1997 NFL season
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League. The Oilers relocated from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee...
, Sham returned to the Cowboys. The network hired Joel Meyers
Joel Meyers
Joel Meyers is an American sportscaster and former play-by-play announcer of the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association on Fox Sports West and KCAL. Meyers left the Lakers at the end of the 2010-2011 season when the team did not renew his contract.-Career:Meyers joined the Lakers...
to replace him, and he would hold the position through the end of the 2005 season
2005 NFL season
The 2005 NFL season was the 86th regular season of the National Football League.With the New England Patriots as the defending league champions, regular season play was held from September 8, 2005 to January 1, 2006...
.
Dave Sims
Dave Sims
Dave Sims is an American sportscaster. He currently is the television play-by-play commentator for the Seattle Mariners, the radio play-by-play man for Sunday Night Football on Westwood One, and the host of Basketball and Beyond with Coach K on Sirius XM Satellite Radio...
is the current voice of Sunday Night Football, replacing Meyers permanently after subbing for him when his other broadcasting endeavors, including play-by-play for the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
, San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
, and Big 12 Conference
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving...
college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
on Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Net
The Fox Sports Regional Networks, or simply Fox Sports Net , are a collection of cable TV regional sports networks in the United States owned and operated by News Corporation.- Beginnings :...
, rendered him unavailable. Prior to that, Sims was one of two main broadcasters on the featured doubleheader earlier on Sunday. Howard David subs for Sims on games he can't call due to other commitments.
Color commentary
When Howard David was in the booth, he originally split the season between two color commentators, John DockeryJohn Dockery
John Dockery is an American sportscaster and former American football defensive back who played for the New York Jets and later the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1968 to 1973. He was drafted by the Jets out of Harvard...
and Pat Haden
Pat Haden
Patrick Capper "Pat" Haden is the athletic director at the University of Southern California. He played quarterback for the USC Trojans before playing professionally in the NFL for the Los Angeles Rams from 1976 to 1981...
. This arrangement was in place due to the fact that television coverage of Sunday Night Football was split at the time between TNT and ESPN
ESPN Sunday Night Football
ESPN Sunday Night Football is the ESPN cable network's weekly television broadcasts of Sunday evening National Football League games. The first ESPN Sunday night broadcast occurred on November 8, 1987, while the last one aired on January 1, 2006....
, with Haden serving as TNT's color analyst for their coverage and moving over to the radio side once his obligations with TNT were fulfilled. Other color commentators include Bob Trumpy
Bob Trumpy
Bob Trumpy is a former professional American Football tight end who played for the American Football League's Cincinnati Bengals from 1968 to 1969, and for the NFL Bengals from 1970 through 1977...
, who served as Sunday Night Football analyst from 2000–2004 and again from 2006–2007; John Riggins
John Riggins
Robert John Riggins, nicknamed "The Diesel", is a former American football running back in the National Football League for the New York Jets and Washington Redskins. Riggins was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992....
, who was the color man for the 2005 season; Jim Fassel
Jim Fassel
-Professional:-Personal life:Before the 2003 NFL season, Fassel was reunited with a son, John Mathieson, whom he and his wife Kitty gave up for adoption in 1969. The couple was unmarried when he was born....
, who was 2008's analyst; and James Lofton
James Lofton
James David Lofton is a former American football player and coach. He is a former American football coach for the San Diego Chargers but is best known for his years in the National Football League as a wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers , Los Angeles Raiders , the Buffalo Bills...
, who replaced Fassel in 2009 after he left for a head coaching job in the United Football League.
Monday Night Football
The Monday Night Football broadcast on Westwood One features its lead broadcast team, as the network has long considered Monday night to be its flagship NFL broadcast, even as the NFL now considers the Sunday night game its "game of the week". As such, the team occupying this position stays together to call important playoff games and the Super Bowl.Buck and Stram
For many years (beginning in 19781978 NFL season
The 1978 NFL season was the 59th regular season of the National Football League. The league expanded the regular season from a 14-game schedule to 16. Furthermore, the playoff format was expanded from 8 teams to 10 teams by adding another wild card from each conference...
), the CBS Radio/Westwood One coverage of Monday Night Football was anchored by Jack Buck
Jack Buck
John Francis "Jack" Buck was an American sportscaster, best known for his work announcing Major League Baseball games of the St. Louis Cardinals. Buck received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987, and is honored with a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame...
on play-by-play, with former Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
coach Hank Stram
Hank Stram
Henry Louis "Hank" Stram was an American football coach. He is best known for his 15-year tenure with the American Football League's Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs and the Chiefs of the NFL. Stram won three AFL Championships and Super Bowl IV with the Chiefs...
alongside him in the color position. They stayed paired together for nearly every major game covered by the network from 1978 until Super Bowl XIX
Super Bowl XIX
Super Bowl XIX was an American football game played on January 20, 1985 at Stanford Stadium, on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California, to decide the National Football League champion following the 1984 regular season...
in January 1985. Since Westwood One now regards NBC Radio
NFL on NBC Radio
From 1985-1986, the NBC Radio Network was the official, national radio provider for National Football League games. The program succeeded the CBS Radio Network's package.-Background:...
's coverage of Monday Night Football as part of its broadcast history Stram and Buck were regarded as temporarily replaced by Don Criqui
Don Criqui
Don Criqui is an American sportscaster, currently employed as a play-by-play announcer for CBS Sports. Criqui's duties include occasional television coverage of National Football League games, women's and men's college basketball, occasional college football and radio play-by-play of ISP Sports'...
and Bob Trumpy
Bob Trumpy
Bob Trumpy is a former professional American Football tight end who played for the American Football League's Cincinnati Bengals from 1968 to 1969, and for the NFL Bengals from 1970 through 1977...
for the two years NBC Radio held the contract. Buck and Stram returned to the booth at the beginning of the 1987 season and stayed there until the end of the 1995 season, with Super Bowl XXX
Super Bowl XXX
Super Bowl XXX was an American football game played on January 28, 1996 at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona to decide the National Football League champion following the 1995 regular season...
in January 1996 marking their final game as a broadcast team after sixteen total seasons on radio.
During their time as Monday Night Football lead broadcast team both Buck and Stram worked on the television side as well. Stram had served as a color commentator on The NFL on CBS
NFL on CBS
The NFL on CBS is the brand name of the CBS television network's coverage of the National Football League's American Football Conference games, produced by CBS Sports.-Market coverage and television policies:...
prior to joining Buck on the radio and continued to do so from 1978 until CBS lost the rights to the NFL in 1993. Buck rejoined the CBS television coverage as a play-by-play man in 1982 (after having called games for the network from 1964 to 1974) and remained there until 1987. The duo worked together as a television broadcast team in 1982, 1983, and 1985.
David, Millen and Esiason
To replace the departing Buck and Stram for 19961996 NFL season
The 1996 NFL season was the 77th regular season of the National Football League and the season was marked by notable controversies from beginning to end...
, Westwood One promoted Howard David
Howard David
-Biography:Over the years, David has been the radio play-by-play man for several pro sports teams including the NBA's New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics, and the NFL's New York Jets and Miami Dolphins...
from the Sunday Night Football broadcast and moved Matt Millen
Matt Millen
Matthew George "Matt" Millen is an American former National Football League linebacker and a former executive. Millen played for the Oakland Raiders, the San Francisco 49ers and the Washington Redskins. In Millen's 12-year NFL playing career, he played on four Super Bowl-winning teams...
, who at the time was a color commentator for Fox
NFL on FOX
NFL on Fox is the brand name of the Fox Broadcasting Company's coverage of the National Football League's National Football Conference games, produced by Fox Sports...
and a contributor to the Westwood One Monday night pregame show, into the booth alongside him. Beginning in 1998 and continuing until 2001 David served as the play-by-play voice of the New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
for WFAN
WFAN
WFAN , also known as "Sports Radio 66" or "The FAN", is a radio station in New York City. The station broadcasts on a clear channel and is owned by CBS Radio...
and later WABC
WABC (AM)
WABC , known as "NewsTalkRadio 77 WABC" is a radio station in New York City. Owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media, the station broadcasts on a clear channel and is the flagship station of Cumulus Media Networks...
, and would require a substitute when the Jets played on Monday night or in the playoffs. An example of the latter came in the 1998
1998 NFL season
The 1998 NFL season was the 79th regular season of the National Football League.The Tennessee Oilers moved their home games from Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, still awaiting construction on a new stadium in Nashville.This was the first season that CBS...
NFC Championship Game
NFC Championship Game
The National Football Conference Championship Game is one of the two semi-final playoff matches of the National Football League, the largest professional American football league in the United States. The game is played on the penultimate Sunday in January and determines the champion of the...
; John Rooney
John Rooney
John Rooney is an American sportscaster, currently best known for his role as a radio broadcaster for Major League Baseball's St. Louis Cardinals.-Early career:...
substituted for an absent David in Minneapolis for Westwood One as he called that year's AFC Championship Game
AFC Championship Game
The American Football Conference Championship Game is one of the two final playoff matches of the National Football League, the largest professional American football league in the United States. The game is played on the penultimate Sunday in January and determines the champion of the American...
for WFAN.
Boomer Esiason
Boomer Esiason
Norman Julius "Boomer" Esiason is a former American football quarterback and current network color commentator. He played for the National Football League's Cincinnati Bengals, New York Jets, and Arizona Cardinals before working as an analyst for ABC and HBO...
joined David and Millen for the 2000 season after being fired by ABC from the Monday Night Football telecast. It was the last season in the booth for Millen as he departed to take a position as President of the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
, a job which he received great crticism in and was eventually fired from in 2008.
In 2001
2001 NFL season
The 2001 NFL season was the 82nd regular season of the National Football League.Following a pattern set in 1999, the first week of the season was permanently moved to the weekend following Labor Day...
David and Esiason were joined by CBS Sports' veteran reporter Lesley Visser
Lesley Visser
Lesley Candace Visser is an American sportscaster, radio personality, and sportswriter. Visser is the first female NFL analyst on TV, and the only sportscaster in history, male or female, who has worked on Final Four, NBA Finals, World Series, Triple Crown, Monday Night Football, the Olympics, the...
, who became the first woman to be an analyst on an NFL broadcast. The pairing only lasted the one season, as Visser decided to leave the booth to focus on her reporting for both CBS and HBO. It was also David's last season calling games for Westwood One until his 2009 return, as he became a full-time sports talk show host in Miami and the voice of the Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
beginning in 2002.
Albert and Esiason
For the 2002 season2002 NFL season
The 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League.The league went back to an even number of teams, expanding to 32 teams with the addition of the Houston Texans. The clubs were then realigned into eight divisions, four teams in each...
Westwood One chose veteran broadcaster Marv Albert
Marv Albert
Marv Albert is an American television and radio sportscaster. Honored for his work as a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, he is commonly referred to as "the voice of basketball." From 1967–2004, he was also known as "the voice of the New York Knicks."Including Super Bowl XLII, Marv has called...
, who had last called NFL games for NBC
NFL on NBC
NFL on NBC is the brand given to NBC Sports coverage of National Football League games until 1998, when NBC lost the NFL American Football Conference rights to CBS...
in 1997 and was best known for his NBA broadcasting for NBC, TNT, and (at the time) the New York Knicks
New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
. Esiason stayed on to be his color commentator. Since Esiason also joined The NFL Today
The NFL Today
The NFL Today is an American sports series that precedes the American football program The NFL on CBS on CBS Sports. The program usually airs at noon on Sundays of the National Football League regular season...
broadcast team for the 2002 season and CBS (at the time) traveled to the site of the AFC Championship Game, Albert and Esiason became the exclusive voices of the game. To accomplish this Esiason would call the end of each half with a wireless microphone so he could save time to go to the field level set CBS used for these games. Esiason has also done this in years CBS has carried the Super Bowl, but has not done this for the AFC Championship game since the 2005 game in Denver as CBS has not traveled to the AFC Championship since.
Beginning in 2007, due to his current job as morning host for WFAN, Esiason has required substitute announcers for games that require significant travel from his New York home. For the first two years of this arrangement various guest announcers would fill Esiason's place alongside Albert. Beginning in 2009 Westwood One appointed Kevin Harlan
Kevin Harlan
Kevin Harlan is an American television sports announcer. The son of former Green Bay Packers executive Bob Harlan, he currently broadcasts NFL and college basketball games on CBS. Harlan is also a play-by-play announcer for the NBA on TNT...
and Warren Moon
Warren Moon
Harold Warren Moon is a former American professional gridiron football quarterback who played for the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos and the National Football League's Houston Oilers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs...
to serve as the backup broadcast team, with Harlan substituting for Albert on games he was unable to make due to other commitments and Moon substituting for Esiason when travel to the game was an issue.
The pairing ended following the 2009 NFL season, with Albert's last call being Super Bowl XLIV
Super Bowl XLIV
Super Bowl XLIV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion New Orleans Saints to decide the National Football League champion for the 2009 season. The Saints defeated the Colts by a score of...
in Miami. On June 4, 2010, Albert announced that he was leaving Westwood One to focus on his NBA broadcasting duties for TNT and the YES Network
YES Network
The Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network is a New York City-based, regional cable television channel; it broadcasts a variety of sports events, with an emphasis on New York Yankees baseball games, and New Jersey Nets basketball games. YES made its debut on March 19, 2002...
.
Harlan and Esiason
On June 29, 2010, it was announced that Kevin Harlan would be succeeding Albert as Westwood One's primary play-by-play voice for Monday Night Football, with Esiason continuing as color commentator. In 2010, Randy CrossRandy Cross
Randall "Randy" Laureat Cross , is a football analyst and former NFL offensive lineman. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in July 2011.-High school years:...
served as Esiason's substitute for select games, while Wayne Larrivee
Wayne Larrivee
Wayne Larrivee is an American sportscaster, who is the radio play-by-play voice of the Green Bay Packers and football and basketball play-by-play voice for the Big Ten Network.-Early life and career:...
filled in on play-by-play when Harlan was unavailable. In 2011, Dan Fouts
Dan Fouts
Daniel Francis Fouts is a retired Hall of Fame American football quarterback in the National Football League. Fouts played his entire professional career with the San Diego Chargers from 1973 through 1987...
will serve as Esiason's substitute for select games.
Pregame and halftime show host
The Monday Night Football pregame and halftime shows are conducted differently than Westwood One's usual pregames, as there is no other game action to recap. Jim GrayJim Gray (sportscaster)
Jim Gray is an American sportscaster. He has previously worked as a reporter with NBC Sports and CBS Sports. He is currently with Westwood One radio network, Showtime, Golf Channel, the Sacramento Kings, and ESPN/ESPN on ABC...
presides over both the pregame and halftime shows, which are more feature driven and often feature guest commentators such as Mike Ditka
Mike Ditka
Michael Keller Ditka, Jr. is a former American football NFL player, television commentator, and coach. Ditka coached the Chicago Bears for 11 years and New Orleans Saints for three years. Ditka and Tom Flores are the only two people to win Super Bowls as a player, an assistant coach, and a head...
, who contributes to the pregame show weekly with predictions and commentary. In addition to the Monday night games, Gray also hosts the studio shows for the Thursday opening game and the Super Bowl.
There is currently no official sideline reporter for Monday Night Football on Westwood One. John Dockery
John Dockery
John Dockery is an American sportscaster and former American football defensive back who played for the New York Jets and later the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1968 to 1973. He was drafted by the Jets out of Harvard...
served as sideline reporter from 1999 to 2007.
Spanish language
In 2005, Westwood One carried an alternate Spanish-language feed featuring Clemson Smith-Muniz as play-by-play host and David Crommett as commentator. Those broadcasts have moved to United Stations Radio NetworksUnited Stations Radio Networks
United Stations Radio Networks is a radio network providing a wide range of programs and programming services for radio stations across the US and elsewhere...
.
Run to the Playoffs (Thursday Night/Saturday Night Football)
With the NFL adding late season Thursday and Saturday night games to its slate in 20062006 NFL season
The 2006 NFL season was the 87th regular season of the National Football League.Regular season play was held from September 7 to December 31, 2006...
(as well as consolidating its Saturday action into one game), Westwood One has added the Run to the Playoffs
Run to the Playoffs
Thursday Night Football is the brand name used by NFL Network for its schedule of live regular season telecasts of National Football League games on Thursday nights. Also included in the package are some Saturday specials....
games to its coverage.
Ian Eagle
Ian Eagle
Ian Eagle is an American sports announcer calling National Football League games on CBS, New Jersey Nets games on the YES Network and hosts Full Court Press, a basketball talk show with former player Kenny Smith on Sirius Satellite Radio...
called Westwood One's Thursday Night Football games in 2008 and 2009. In 2010, Eagle will be joined by Trent Green
Trent Green
Trent Jason Green is a retired professional American football quarterback. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL Draft. He played college football at Indiana University....
. He was previously joined by Dennis Green
Dennis Green
Dennis "Denny" Green is an American football head coach for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League...
in 2008 and Randy Cross
Randy Cross
Randall "Randy" Laureat Cross , is a football analyst and former NFL offensive lineman. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in July 2011.-High school years:...
in 2009 as color analysts. Green also served as the analyst in 2007, and left to take a head coaching job in the United Football League.
Dick Enberg
Dick Enberg
Richard Alan "Dick" Enberg is an American sportscaster. He currently provides play-by-play for telecasts of San Diego Padres baseball on 4SD, following a long career calling various sports for such networks as NBC, CBS, and ESPN...
served as Westwood One's Thursday Night Football voice from 2006–2007, with Sam Wyche
Sam Wyche
Samuel David "Sam" Wyche is a former American football player and head coach, who is best known as the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL...
as his analyst for the 2006 season. Don Criqui
Don Criqui
Don Criqui is an American sportscaster, currently employed as a play-by-play announcer for CBS Sports. Criqui's duties include occasional television coverage of National Football League games, women's and men's college basketball, occasional college football and radio play-by-play of ISP Sports'...
and Joel Meyers
Joel Meyers
Joel Meyers is an American sportscaster and former play-by-play announcer of the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association on Fox Sports West and KCAL. Meyers left the Lakers at the end of the 2010-2011 season when the team did not renew his contract.-Career:Meyers joined the Lakers...
served as play-by-play men for Saturday Night Football, with Marv Albert calling the lone Saturday game in 2008.
Playoff coverage
For the first two rounds of the playoffs, often the regular broadcast teams for Westwood One are mixed, due to Boomer Esiason's unavailability. During the wild card and divisional weekends, there are four games, therefore four separate crews are needed. Some of the other established crews call the less-popular games. For instance, in 2007, Dick EnbergDick Enberg
Richard Alan "Dick" Enberg is an American sportscaster. He currently provides play-by-play for telecasts of San Diego Padres baseball on 4SD, following a long career calling various sports for such networks as NBC, CBS, and ESPN...
and Dennis Green
Dennis Green
Dennis "Denny" Green is an American football head coach for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League...
(from the Thursday night crew) called one of the wild card games, and Marv Albert called games alongside Jim Fassel
Jim Fassel
-Professional:-Personal life:Before the 2003 NFL season, Fassel was reunited with a son, John Mathieson, whom he and his wife Kitty gave up for adoption in 1969. The couple was unmarried when he was born....
from the Sunday doubleheader team. In 2009, the teams were even more mixed- for example, Marv Albert called an opening round game with Dennis Green and a divisional playoff game with Warren Moon
Warren Moon
Harold Warren Moon is a former American professional gridiron football quarterback who played for the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos and the National Football League's Houston Oilers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs...
.
Typically, the first time the main crews are together comes during conference championship weekend. Since Esiason has become a member of The NFL Today cast he and Albert will call the AFC Championship Game (in years that CBS broadcasts from the game site and in addition to their duties as Super Bowl broadcasters) while the Sunday Night Football team will be responsible for the NFC Championship Game. Since 2006
NFL playoffs, 2006-07
The National Football League playoffs for the 2006 season began on January 6, 2007 and led up to Super Bowl XLI on February 4, 2007 at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.-AFC: Indianapolis Colts 23, Kansas City Chiefs 8:...
, however, CBS has not chosen to travel to the sites of the AFC Championship Game. In the first of those two seasons Albert called the 2007 game in Indianapolis alongside Sam Wyche
Sam Wyche
Samuel David "Sam" Wyche is a former American football player and head coach, who is best known as the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL...
.
In 2008, neither Albert nor Esiason was available on championship weekend, so Dave Sims and Bob Trumpy moved to the AFC Championship game in New England while Bill Rosinski took Albert's place alongside Jim Fassel for the NFC Championship game in Green Bay. For 2009, Albert returned to the booth for championship Sunday, calling the NFC Championship game alongside Fassel with Dave Sims and Dennis Green responsible for the AFC Championship game. The 2010 conference championship games saw Kevin Harlan
Kevin Harlan
Kevin Harlan is an American television sports announcer. The son of former Green Bay Packers executive Bob Harlan, he currently broadcasts NFL and college basketball games on CBS. Harlan is also a play-by-play announcer for the NBA on TNT...
and Warren Moon call the AFC championship game while Sims and James Lofton called the NFC championship game.
Other programming
Westwood One, in addition to its game coverage and highlight show on Sundays, Mondays, and Thursdays, offers to affiliate stations four different NFL-related programs during the season leading up to the Super Bowl. The first to premiere is Fantasy Football Forecast, an hour-long weekly program hosted by Kevin Kugler and James Lofton regarding fantasy leagues. This program premieres in late August and runs until the final week of the season.A second program, NFL Insider, runs from the beginning of the season through to the Super Bowl, is a program hosted by Sunday doubleheader analysts Mark Malone and Dan Reeves and CBS television's Steve Tasker
Steve Tasker
Steven Jay Tasker is a broadcaster for CBS Sports, who previously was a wide receiver/gunner in the National Football League. He was drafted in the ninth round of the 1985 NFL Draft by the Houston Oilers. He played college football at Northwestern...
, where the hosts provide analysis of the week, present highlights of the previous week's action, and interview players and coaches.
Boomer Esiason hosts an NFL preview show every week (appropriately called NFL Preview), where he and Scott Graham analyze each game in depth and provide information about what players and other factors will play roles in the upcoming week. This program runs through Super Bowl Sunday and is thirty minutes in length, but runs for an hour leading into the Super Bowl.
Graham and Esiason also present a live radio version of The NFL Today
The NFL Today
The NFL Today is an American sports series that precedes the American football program The NFL on CBS on CBS Sports. The program usually airs at noon on Sundays of the National Football League regular season...
every Sunday morning.
Other broadcasters who work or have worked on The NFL on Westwood One
- Kenny AlbertKenny AlbertKenny Albert , is an American sportscaster, and the son of sportscaster Marv Albert and the nephew of sportscasters Al Albert and Steve Albert...
- Trev AlbertsTrev AlbertsTrev Kendall Alberts is the director of athletics for the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Before assuming this position, he was an American television and print college football commentator, most notably working alongside Mark May on the ESPN's College GameDay Scoreboard show.-Collegiate:Alberts...
- Hub Arkush
- Jeff BosticJeff BosticJeffrey Lynn Bostic is a former American football offensive lineman who played for the Washington Redskins in the National Football League.-College career:...
- Mark ChampionMark ChampionMark Champion is an American radio sportscaster who is the current primary radio play-by-play voice of the Detroit Pistons, a position he has served in since 2001...
- Randy CrossRandy CrossRandall "Randy" Laureat Cross , is a football analyst and former NFL offensive lineman. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in July 2011.-High school years:...
- Mike DitkaMike DitkaMichael Keller Ditka, Jr. is a former American football NFL player, television commentator, and coach. Ditka coached the Chicago Bears for 11 years and New Orleans Saints for three years. Ditka and Tom Flores are the only two people to win Super Bowls as a player, an assistant coach, and a head...
(pregame analysis on Monday Night Football) - Bob FitzgeraldBob FitzgeraldBob Fitzgerald is a TV play-by-play voice for the Golden State Warriors and San Jose SaberCats on CSN Bay Area, and is a co-host of the show Fitz and Brooks on KNBR with co-host Rod Brooks.-Education:...
- Dan FoutsDan FoutsDaniel Francis Fouts is a retired Hall of Fame American football quarterback in the National Football League. Fouts played his entire professional career with the San Diego Chargers from 1973 through 1987...
- Jack Ham
- Paul HornungPaul HornungPaul Vernon Hornung is a retired Hall of Fame professional football player who played for the Green Bay Packers from 1957-66...
- Larry Kahn
- Harry KalasHarry KalasHarry Norbert Kalas was an American sportscaster, best known for his Ford C. Frick Award-winning role as lead play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies...
- Kevin KileyKevin Kiley (sportscaster)Kevin Kiley, Sr. is an American sportscaster and talk show host. He currently resides and works in Cleveland, Ohio as co-host of the morning-drive Kiley and Booms alongside comedian Chuck Booms on "Sports Radio 92.3 The Fan" WKRK-FM....
- Jack Lambert
- Wayne LarriveeWayne LarriveeWayne Larrivee is an American sportscaster, who is the radio play-by-play voice of the Green Bay Packers and football and basketball play-by-play voice for the Big Ten Network.-Early life and career:...
- James LoftonJames LoftonJames David Lofton is a former American football player and coach. He is a former American football coach for the San Diego Chargers but is best known for his years in the National Football League as a wide receiver for the Green Bay Packers , Los Angeles Raiders , the Buffalo Bills...
- John Madden (occasional pregame work in early 1990s)
- Warren MoonWarren MoonHarold Warren Moon is a former American professional gridiron football quarterback who played for the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos and the National Football League's Houston Oilers, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs...
- Bob PapaBob PapaBob Papa is an American sportscaster. Papa is employed by NFL Network, HBO, and the New York Giants.-Biography:Papa grew up in Dumont, New Jersey and graduated from Bergen Catholic High School in nearby Oradell...
- Allen PinkettAllen PinkettAllen Pinkett is a former professional American football player who played running back for six seasons for the Houston Oilers. He grew up in the Sterling, Virginia area and attended Park View High School there in the early 1980s.-Playing career:Pinkett was a two-time All-American at Notre Dame...
- Tony Roberts
- Ted RobinsonTed Robinson (sportscaster)Theodore "Ted" Robinson is an American sportscaster. He is currently the radio play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco 49ers, having taken over for longtime 49ers announcer, Joe Starkey, following Starkey's retirement in 2009.-Early life:Ted Robinson grew up in Rockville Centre, New York and...
- John RooneyJohn RooneyJohn Rooney is an American sportscaster, currently best known for his role as a radio broadcaster for Major League Baseball's St. Louis Cardinals.-Early career:...
- Bill RosinskiBill RosinskiBill Rosinski is an American sportscaster and talk show host, operating primarily out of Charlotte, North Carolina.Rosinski currently works for ESPN Radio as its lead college football and college basketball commentator, as well as for ISP Sports calling ACC sports...
- Lesley VisserLesley VisserLesley Candace Visser is an American sportscaster, radio personality, and sportswriter. Visser is the first female NFL analyst on TV, and the only sportscaster in history, male or female, who has worked on Final Four, NBA Finals, World Series, Triple Crown, Monday Night Football, the Olympics, the...
- Rick "Doc" Walker
- Sam WycheSam WycheSamuel David "Sam" Wyche is a former American football player and head coach, who is best known as the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL...
2006 pairings
- Sunday doubleheader: Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves
- Sunday doubleheader: Harry Kalas, Trev Alberts; Tommy Tighe
- Sunday Night Football: Dave Sims, Bob Trumpy, Tommy Tighe
- Monday Night Football: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, Jim Gray
- Thursday Night Football: Dick Enberg, Sam Wyche, Bonnie Bernstein
- Saturday Night Football: Joel Meyers, Kevin Kiley
- Thanksgiving Classic: Mark Champion, Kevin Kiley (Detroit); Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves (Dallas); Dick Enberg, Sam Wyche (Kansas City)
- Playoffs: (announcers call one of each weekend's games)
- Super Bowl XLISuper Bowl XLISuper Bowl XLI was an American football game that featured the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League champion for the 2006 season...
: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, John Dockery, Bonnie Bernstein, Jim Gray - Pro Bowl2007 Pro BowlThe 2007 AFC-NFC Pro Bowl took place on February 10, 2007, at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The game was held on a Saturday instead of the usual Sunday after the Super Bowl because of a request by broadcaster CBS....
: Dave Sims, Boomer Esiason
2007 pairings
- Sunday doubleheader: Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves
- Sunday doubleheader: Harry Kalas, Jim Fassel; Tommy Tighe
- Sunday Night Football: Dave Sims, Bob Trumpy, Tommy Tighe
- Monday Night Football: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, Jim Gray
- Thursday Night Football: Dick Enberg, Dennis Green, Bonnie Bernstein
- Saturday Night Football: Don Criqui, John Dockery, Tommy Tighe
- Thanksgiving Classic: Mark Champion, Kevin Kiley (Detroit); Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves (Dallas); Dick Enberg, Dennis Green (Atlanta)
- Playoffs: (announcers call one of each weekend's games)
- Super Bowl XLIISuper Bowl XLIISuper Bowl XLII was an American football game on February 3, 2008 that featured the National Football Conference champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League champion for the 2007 season...
: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, John Dockery, Kevin Kiley, Jim Gray - Pro Bowl2008 Pro BowlThe 2008 AFC-NFC Pro Bowl was the NFL's all-star game for the 2007 season. It was played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii on February 10, 2008. The game was televised in the United States by Fox and began shortly after 11:40am local time . The NFC won, 42–30, despite a 17-point first half AFC...
: Dave Sims, Boomer Esiason
2008 pairings
- Sunday doubleheader: Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves
- Sunday doubleheader: Harry Kalas, Mark Malone
- Sunday Night Football: Dave Sims, Jim Fassel
- Monday Night Football: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, Jim Gray
- Thursday Night Football: Ian Eagle, Dennis Green, Hub Arkush
- Saturday Night Football: Marv Albert, Michael Irvin
- Thanksgiving Classic: Mark Champion, Jim Fassel (Detroit); Bill Rosinski, Dan Reeves (Dallas); Ian Eagle, Dennis Green (Philadelphia)
- Playoffs: (announcers call one of each weekend's games)
- Super Bowl XLIIISuper Bowl XLIIISuper Bowl XLIII was an American football game pitting the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers against the National Football Conference champion Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League champion for the 2008 season. The game was played on February 1, 2009,...
: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, John Dockery, Mark Malone, Jim Gray - Pro Bowl2009 Pro BowlThe 2009 AFC-NFC Pro Bowl was the NFL's all-star game for the 2008 season. It was played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii on February 8, 2009. This was the last time that a Pro Bowl game was held after the NFL Super Bowl game...
: Dave Sims, Boomer Esiason, Warren Moon
2009 pairings
- Sunday doubleheader: Howard David, Dan Reeves
- Sunday doubleheader: Kevin Kugler, Mark Malone
- Sunday Night Football: Dave Sims, James Lofton
- Monday Night Football (primary): Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, Jim Gray
- Monday Night Football (secondary): Kevin Harlan, Warren Moon
- Thursday Night Football: Ian Eagle, Randy Cross
- Thanksgiving Classic: Larry Kahn, Dan Fouts, Troy West (Detroit, on loan from Sports USASports USA Radio NetworkThe Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League...
); Howard David, Dan Reeves, Kevin Kiley (Dallas); Ian Eagle, Randy Cross, Laura Okmin (Denver) - Playoffs: (announcers call one of each weekend's games)
- Super Bowl XLIVSuper Bowl XLIVSuper Bowl XLIV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion New Orleans Saints to decide the National Football League champion for the 2009 season. The Saints defeated the Colts by a score of...
: Marv Albert, Boomer Esiason, James Lofton, Mark Malone, Jim Gray - Pro Bowl2010 Pro BowlThe 2010 AFC–NFC Pro Bowl was the NFL's all-star game for the 2009 season. It took place at 8:00 PM EST on Sunday, January 31, 2010, at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, the home stadium of the Miami Dolphins and host site of Super Bowl XLIV...
: Larry Kahn, Dan Fouts, Boomer Esiason, Mark Malone (Kahn and Fouts on loan from Sports USA)
2010 pairings
- Sunday doubleheader: Howard David, Tony Boselli
- Sunday doubleheader: Kevin Kugler, Mark Malone
- Sunday Night Football: Dave Sims, James Lofton
- Monday Night Football: Kevin Harlan, Boomer Esiason, Randy Cross (Select Games), Jim Gray
- Thursday Night Football: Ian Eagle, Trent Green
- Thanksgiving Classic: Larry Kahn, Dan Fouts, Laura Okmin (Detroit, on loan from Sports USASports USA Radio NetworkThe Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League...
); Howard David, Tony Boselli, Kevin Kiley (Dallas); Ian Eagle, Boomer Esiason, Sean Landeta (New York) - Playoffs: (announcers call one of each weekend's games)
- Super Bowl XLVSuper Bowl XLVSuper Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League champion for the 2010 season. The game was held at Cowboys Stadium in...
: Kevin Harlan, Boomer Esiason, James Lofton, Mark Malone, Jim Gray - Pro Bowl2011 Pro BowlThe 2011 AFC–NFC Pro Bowl was the NFL's all-star game for the 2010 season. It took place at 7:00 p.m. EST on Sunday, January 30, 2011 at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii...
: Larry Kahn, Dan Fouts, Laura Okmin (Kahn and Fouts on loan from Sports USA)
2011 pairings
- Sunday doubleheader: Howard David, Tony Boselli
- Sunday doubleheader: Kevin Kugler, Mark Malone
- Sunday Night Football: Dave Sims, James Lofton
- Monday Night Football: Kevin Harlan, Boomer Esiason, Dan Fouts (Select Games), Jim Gray
- Thursday Night Football: Ian Eagle, Trent Green
- Thanksgiving Classic: Kevin Kugler, Mark Malone, Hub Arkush (Detroit); Howard David, Tony Boselli, Kevin Kiley (Dallas); Ian Eagle, Randy Cross, Laura Okmin (Baltimore)
Availability
For the Conference Championship games and the Super Bowl, most affiliate radio stations of the participating teams' networks must accept the feed from Westwood One. Only the flagship stations (in both EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and other languages) can transmit the team's local radio broadcast, although the local broadcasts are also available on Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
and NFL Audio Pass
NFL Audio Pass
NFL Audio Pass is a subscription Internet radio Out-of-Market Sports Package provided by the National Football League that provides live and archived audio broadcasts of NFL games throughout the regular season and playoffs at a price of $9.95 per month or $29.95 per season.Prior to 2002, NFL.com...
. An exception is made for the Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are an American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Packers are the current NFL champions...
because they technically have flagships in two separate cities, WTAQ-FM/AM and WIXX (FM) in Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
and WTMJ
WTMJ (AM)
WTMJ is a radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin broadcasting at 620 AM. It is a 50,000-watt station airing a format of news, talk and sports. WTMJ is owned by Journal Broadcast Group, which also owns the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and sister station WLWK-FM....
in Milwaukee
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
; the latter station has produced Packers radio broadcasts for many years. If the local Westwood One affiliate is not the same as the corresponding affiliate of the team, the Westwood One station retains broadcast rights and the team's station must switch to alternate programming (for example, KSPN
KSPN (AM)
KSPN is an all-sports radio station based in Los Angeles, California. It is owned by Disney. It is an ESPN Radio owned-and-operated station.-Play-by-play:...
in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
aired an alternate feed of ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
on January 20, 2008 when the San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers are a professional American football team based in San Diego, California. they were members of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
played in the AFC Championship Game, as exclusive rights belonged to KLAC, the Chargers' L.A. flagship.)
For all other weeks, within 75 miles of a team's stadium, only stations the team or its flagship station contracts with can carry those games, regardless if the team is home or away. Thus, any competing station that carries Westwood One broadcasts cannot air those games- for instance, any time the New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
are playing on Sunday or Monday nights, their games do not air on New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's Westwood One affiliate, WFAN
WFAN
WFAN , also known as "Sports Radio 66" or "The FAN", is a radio station in New York City. The station broadcasts on a clear channel and is owned by CBS Radio...
, but instead WABC
WABC (AM)
WABC , known as "NewsTalkRadio 77 WABC" is a radio station in New York City. Owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media, the station broadcasts on a clear channel and is the flagship station of Cumulus Media Networks...
and WEPN
WEPN
WEPN is a 24-hour sports talk formatted radio station in New York City featuring national and local sports talk programs and live broadcasts of sports matches. It is the New York affiliate for ESPN Radio...
(the Jets' flagships) retain local exclusivity. (In the case of the Sunday doubleheaders, most stations can opt for an alternate national broadcast from the Sports USA Radio Network
Sports USA Radio Network
The Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League...
or, beginning in 2009, Compass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks
Compass Media Networks is an American radio network.The company launched in January 2009. It is owned by former Westwood One CEO and former COO of Connoisseur Media, Peter Kosann...
.) This rule applies to Toronto, Canada whenever the Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
play nationally. (However, in the case of Toronto, the same station affiliates with both the Bills radio network
Buffalo Bills Radio Network
The Buffalo Bills Radio Network is a broadcast radio network based in Buffalo, New York, the official radio broadcaster of the Buffalo Bills. The network's radio broadcasts are currently flagshipped at WGRF in Buffalo, New York, a station owned by Cumulus Media...
and Westwood One, which means the only difference is which broadcast team the station uses). For a time, the rule applied to the Los Angeles market, but it was relaxed in 2008 and all national radio broadcasts are now available in that market on KLAC (Westwood One) and KFWB (Sports USA Radio).
A similar rule applies to Westwood One's NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
coverage, although the NHL's radius is much smaller, and in some markets (such as Rochester, New York), local broadcasts and national broadcasts have aired on competing stations.
The NFL on Westwood One originally was not available on the NFL Audio Pass
NFL Audio Pass
NFL Audio Pass is a subscription Internet radio Out-of-Market Sports Package provided by the National Football League that provides live and archived audio broadcasts of NFL games throughout the regular season and playoffs at a price of $9.95 per month or $29.95 per season.Prior to 2002, NFL.com...
(formerly Field Pass) subscription Internet radio service, though the network's prime time and playoff broadcasts became available beginning in the 2009 NFL season
2009 NFL season
The 2009 NFL season was the 90th regular season of the National Football League.The preseason started with the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on August 9, 2009, and the regular season began September 10. The season ended with Super Bowl XLIV, the league's championship game, on February 7, 2010 at...
as a result of a new broadcast contract.
In December 2008, it was reported that the NFL was considering leaving Westwood One for a rival service (ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
, Sports USA
Sports USA Radio Network
The Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League...
, and Sporting News Radio
Sporting News Radio
Yahoo! Sports Radio, formerly Sporting News Radio is a United States sports radio network that broadcasts sports news, talk, scores, and highlights 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. On August 1, 2011, it was announced the network would change its name to Yahoo! Sports Radio, effective...
being the contenders), or possibly splitting rights for prime-time, Thanksgiving, and postseason games between two or more networks. However, on March 12, 2009 it was announced that Westwood One had signed a two-year extension with the NFL. The league then announced on December 22, 2010 that Westwood One's contract has been extended through 2014.