Broncos QB Tim Tebow has turned down a request by CBS "to join their 'NFL Today' studio show" during coverage of the Ravens-Patriots AFC Championship game Sunday, according to Mike Klis of the DENVER POST. Tebow yesterday said, "I'm not doing it." The Broncos lost to the Patriots 45-10 last Saturday night in an AFC Divisional playoff game (DENVERPOST.com, 1/17). The N.Y. POST notes it "appeared that CBS wanted to keep football's most recognizable figure on TV for another week, even if his team had been knocked out of the run-up to the Super Bowl." Lions DT Ndamukong Suh appeared last Sunday on the net's studio show prior to the Ravens-Texans AFC Divisional game after losing to the Saints in the NFC Wild Card round (N.Y. POST, 1/18). In Alabama, Bill Bryant writes the decision is a "smart move" by Tebow, as he has a "lot of work to do anyway, now that the Denver Broncos' season is over" (HUNTSVILLE TIMES, 1/18). The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Jason Gay writes while Tebow-mania is "down to its final vapors," this weekend will "feel a little lonely without him." Gay: "I agree the whole Tebow thing go to be too much, saturated with hyperbole and strained, magniloquent theories about why he'd become the country's most-discussed athlete. But at its core was an obvious, irresistible truth. Tebow helped the Broncos win a lot of very fun football games" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 1/18).
NO SPONSOR TIE-IN: CBS Exec Producer Harold Bryant yesterday said the net did not have Suh serve as a guest studio analyst last weekend because of his endorsement deal with Subway. The chain sponsors CBS' NFL postgame show. Bryant said, “We brought him in because he's a top NFL player” (USATODAY.com, 1/17). Suh said of his time on the show, “I loved it. I mean, it was something that I had a lot of fun with. I got to hang out with Dan Marino, James Brown, all those different, cool former players and analysts. It was a great time. I enjoyed it and looking forward to doing it many, many years down the road after we win some championships in Detroit.” Suh said he had not thought of becoming a commentator, but noted, “A lot of people told me I'm kind of a natural" ("Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," NBC, 1/17).
LIFTOFF IN HOUSTON: In Houston, David Barron noted the Ravens-Texans game Sunday "set another standard for the most-watched Texans game since the franchise debut in 2002 against the Cowboys." The playoff game earned a 37.0 local rating, which translated to "an average audience of 808,546 households in the Houston designated market area" (CHRON.com, 1/17).
