CBS rises to game’s occasion
The Super Bowl, it’s often said, is more than a game. And that’s true. It’s also a TV show.
There’s pressure on the players before the big game, sure, but what about the broadcasters? Let it be said that CBS performed well under the glare of a golden Super Bowl 50 on Sunday. The network offered a crisply produced show with sleek new graphics, 70 cameras — from high in the sky to ground-level pylons — and the familiar voices of Jim Nantz and Phil Simms.
Lady Gaga nailed the national anthem, leaving an open question: Would the game live up to her rendition? No matter how well prepared a broadcast team is, announcers depend on a memorable game to put on a memorable show. Or, as CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus told USA TODAY Sports hours before kickoff, “It’s a feeling of excitement and some trepidation, praying for a lot of good luck and, specifically, a good game.”
CBS, and the rest of us, got a good game. The underdog Denver Broncos and their dominating defense held on to beat the Carolina Panthers 24-10, and it was a sixpoint game deep into the fourth quarter.
“A final star turn it is for Pey- ton,” Nantz said of Broncos quarterback Manning as the clock hit 0:00, benediction at the buzzer.
Seemed like Simms was everywhere — introduced on the field before the game during the march-on of former MVPs and appearing in a fourth-quarter ad for toenail fungus medication. He was right when he criticized Panthers quarterback Cam Newton for not diving for a loose ball after Von Miller strip-sacked him for a second time and when he said early that the first team to 24 points would win.
Camerawork called EyeVision 360 provided snazzy round-theworld shots, notably of a high-flying short touchdown by Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart. And eye-in-the-sky shots allowed Simms to show how plays worked, or didn’t, putting the high in high tech. The whiz-bang stuff helped to tell the story, rather than overwhelming it, though, true to the nature of selling everything at the Super Bowl, even SkyCam was sponsored by Budweiser.
When the Broncos took a 3-0 lead on the opening drive, a pie chart appeared, showing the Panthers had never trailed in the postseason and had mostly led by 10 or more points. When the Broncos took a 10-0 lead on the first strip-sack of Newton, another graphic quickly reminded that Carolina had trailed by 10 just three times all season — and won all three times.
CBS expert and ex-official Mike Carey thought a challenged pass play would be overturned in the first quarter. When Carey was proved wrong, Nantz and Simms agreed it looked like a catch to them. Much of America agreed. CBS had only 11 cameras for Super Bowl I, but everyone knew what a catch was back in the day.
When the Panthers won their second challenge, Nantz and Simms were late — after a commercial break — to point out that coach Ron Rivera had spent his last challenge.
When the Panthers allowed a 61-yard punt return, longest in Super Bowl history, Simms pointed out they apparently thought Jordan Norwood had signaled fair catch.
Near the end of the third quarter, with Denver leading 16-7, Simms wondered aloud if Carolina had the firepower to score twice against Denver.
He was right again.