A source said that if Greg Olsen is "bumped" to Fox’s No. 2 team, his $10M salary “will be cut" to $3MGetty Images
Fox's Greg Olsen said that he planned to "look at 'the entire spectrum of opportunities' with Fox and other networks" as Tom Brady is set to join the net next season and take Olsen's place in its top NFL booth, according to Person & Deitsch of THE ATHLETIC. With Brady joining, Olsen “figures to be the odd man out, despite overwhelmingly positive reviews from fans and media critics.” Olsen said, “We’ve been planning for that for two years. We knew when we took the job that Brady was there whenever he was going to decide to come.” He added, “But the one thing I will say is I’m damn proud of what we did for two years.” Olsen said that he “appreciates that Fox gave him his start in broadcasting” with a pair of cameo opportunities when he was still playing, and then as a full-time analyst in 2021. Person & Deitsch noted there is “not a clear landing spot for Olsen.” Some industry experts believe that the “most likely scenario is he remains at Fox as the network’s No. 2 analyst.” Olsen has “conducted a clinic over the last two seasons when it comes to being in the shadow of Brady" (THE ATHLETIC, 1/30).
A BIG INVESTMENT: In New Jersey, Art Stapleton writes given the financial investment the network has made in Brady, it is “understandable this is the road on which they have decided to travel.” Of course, that “doesn't make this any easier” with play-by-play voice Kevin Burkhardt, Olsen, and reporters Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi “seemingly peaking as a team.” A source said that if Olsen is "bumped" to Fox’s No. 2 team, his $10M salary “will be cut" to $3M. Stapleton notes there is “no question” Olsen’s presence at the top of the business “is earned.” If he stays at Fox, not “only will he take a pay cut, but he'd likely have to start from scratch in terms of building chemistry with No. 2 play-by-play man Joe Davis.” CBS' Tony Romo, NBC's Cris Collinsworth, ESPN's Troy Aikman and Amazon's Kirk Herbstreit are all “reportedly under contract through the 2024 season” (Bergen RECORD, 1/31).
CRASH TEST: THE RINGER’s Bryan Curtis wrote part of Fox replacing Olsen, an "announcer everyone loves," with Brady is the "Grandma Theory of Sports Television." Networks will "try out the super-famous players first," and if "they flop, they flop." Brady also will “become a kind of ambassador for Fox.” While his duties “remain undefined, at least publicly,” they “go beyond the usual requirements of playing golf with advertisers and smiling at the upfronts.” In the annals of sports TV, it is “very hard to find a perfect comp for Brady.” Pro Football HOFer Joe Montana got hired for NBC’s pregame show in 1995 and he “was bad on TV and ‘retired’ after nine games.” People at Fox think Olsen “will get a no. 1 job somewhere else one day, maybe at Amazon.” It "hurts them to see Olsen moved back to the no. 2 team," even if it is "something of a best-case scenario for the network” (THE RINGER, 1/30).
