NBC News' Steve Kornacki was featured on the "big (playoff) board" last night in the Football Night in America studio, where he broke down NFL playoff races in his "inimitable sleeves-rolled-up-and-fired-up way," according to Peter King of NBCSPORTS.com. Kornacki's crossover was "trending on Twitter," and NFL Network's Judy Battista tweeted, "Kornacki has to be on every Sunday night from now on." King: "That's the plan, Judy." On his drive home from the NBC studio last night, Kornacki said that this "felt like figuring out if Maricopa County indeed was going to flip to Biden." Kornacki: "We did a segment tonight where we were talking about the Cardinals falling to the eighth spot in the playoffs, and Minnesota moves into number seven, but the model still likes Arizona's chances over Minnesota. It's like looking at, 'Well you know in Michigan, right now, Trump is 12 points ahead -- but if you look at the ballots that are still to be counted, where they're from, it says Biden.' It's a very similar thing to election night. I felt it right away." Soon after the election this year, NBC Sports called NBC News "to see if Kornacki -- who'd become a sensation during the presidential election -- might want to do some football forecasting." It was decided that, once the playoff race started to take shape, Kornacki "would do several segments in the NBC studio on Sunday night" (NBCSPORTS.com, 12/7).
COMING OFF BETTER THAN EXPECTED: USA TODAY's Andy Nesbitt writes Kornacki was "actually really good" last night. The move at first "felt like it would be a forced bit by a big network trying to bring back its breakout star from the election coverage." However Kornacki "crushed it," as his "breakdowns of how certain teams like the Giants saw their playoff chances rise by percentage points on Sunday was really informative and different and good" (USA TODAY, 12/7). AWFUL ANNOUNCING's Ian Casselberry writes Kornacki joining the studio show may have been a gimmick, but he "made the transition from cable news program to football pregame show quite well" (AWFULANNOUNCING.com, 12/7). THE RINGER's Nora Princiotti notes the Browns "have been dogged by questions about their point differential and their weak strength of schedule, but they are officially a legitimate contender now that Kornacki ... gestured to an on-screen graphic showing them with a 97 percent chance of making the postseason" (THERINGER.com, 12/7).
MORE TWITTER REAX: Radio host Rich Eisen: "Getting the playoffs scenarios and probabilities from @SteveKornacki was a delight." The Atlantic's Jemele Hill: "Kornacki is going to be on the halftime show? I most certainly will." N.Y. Times contributor Wajahat Ali: "Kornacki has used his political nerdiness to lateral into sports analysis. He has won 2020 and is living the dream." Bloomberg News' Conor Sen: "Maybe this was supposed to be a gimmick but all it did is make me think Kornacki deserves a permanent slot on Sunday Night Football." White House communications advisor Ben Williamson: "Contender for this year’s best crossover: Steve Kornacki breaking down NFL playoff odds." NBC News' Stephanie Ruhle: "I am here for @SteveKornacki & his first-day-of-school haircut. You know he arrived with a backpack. Fantastic #SundayNightFootball."
