Bleacher Report's Chris Simms on Thursday said he has received numerous texts and emails from people about his father, Phil, being replaced in CBS' NFL booth by Tony Romo, with the “general consensus” of the reactions being, "'I can’t believe how CBS has handled this,' 'they’re screwing your dad.'" Simms addressed his father's situation on his “Simms & Lefkoe Podcast." He said of CBS, "You can’t sit there as a normal person who’s evaluated this and seen it happen before and go, ‘They handled it like professionals.’ ... I had to tell my dad first before CBS or anybody because I found out from an NFL insider." Simms said if anything, his father is "probably a little disappointed” that CBS did not talk to him “right away, at least warn him to let him know this was happening.” Simms: “That’s just not what you do to a good, hard-working employee for 20 years who’s been the face of your football station." Simms mentioned the Twitter barbs often pointed at Jim Nantz, Cris Collinsworth and Joe Buck, noting “they get shit on just as badly as my father" ("Simms & Lefkoe Podcast," BleacherReport.com, 4/6). A CBS spokesperson on Thursday "denied Chris Simms’s claims, saying the network kept both Phil Simms and his agent appraised of his situation" (WASHINGTON POST, 4/7).
DIDN'T HANDLE WITH CARE? Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio said it was a "given" CBS consulted Nantz before making the change to Romo "because you effect Jim Nantz' life too." Florio: "Surely you're not going to take away his partner and give him another without saying, 'Jim, are you okay with this?' Because if he's not, that would seem to be a factor." Florio said CBS "screwed this thing up" with the Romo announcement and how it handled Simms' demotion. Florio: "They no longer care about Phil Simms and I doubt he'll ever be doing another game or appearing in any capacity on the CBS network." Florio noted “it was possible” CBS offered Simms another role and he said, ‘No, I don’t want that.'” But if “that was true” and Simms turned down offers from CBS, “they would have leaked it by now.” Florio: “He’s an afterthought and I think he’s on his way out, it’s just a matter of time” ("PFT," NBCSN, 4/7).
SHOW OF SUPPORT: NBC's Al Michaels on Thursday said Romo would have been his "No. 1 draft choice to go into the booth" of active NFLers. Michaels: "It’s no surprise to me that Tony is going to do this, we all looked at Tony and knew when his playing days were done, he'd do this. Tony will be very successful, he’ll grow in it and has a terrific partner in Jim Nantz. Tony's smart and analytical but has a great personality and a great sense of humor, so that will show through at some point" (Palm Springs DESERT SUN, 4/7).
POINT & COUNTERPOINT: In N.Y., Phil Mushnick writes under the header, "Phil Simms Era At CBS Wasn't Supposed To End Like This." Mushnick thought CBS "eventually would dump" Simms because he was "too candid for comfort, not because he had been deemed stale" (N.Y. POST, 4/7). THE MMQB's Tim Rohan believes CBS "paid Romo top dollar" because the network "wants a star commentator that can relate to millennials and younger fans." Rohan: "It’s not a knock on Simms. ... He’s a Giants legend. But time marches on" (MMQB.SI.com. 4/6). But in Jacksonville, Gene Frenette writes, "It’s not like Romo has knockout camera presence." Being well-spoken "isn’t the same thing as being a TV natural." Frenette: "You could understand a network salivating over Peyton Manning replacing Simms." But Romo is a "TV wild-card, someone who wouldn’t have even been considered as Nantz’s sidekick had he starred in a smaller market" instead of Dallas (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 4/7).
