Aikman shines, Thursday night NFL a winner
Thursday night football is here to stay, even if it’s gone for the rest of 2018.
In past years, some — make that many — would have said “good riddance.” That would be misguided this year.
First off, Fox’s presentation generally was strong and on target. Indeed, Troy Aikman, who has been Fox’s lead analyst for 17 years, might have had his best season.
Seemingly energized by having a true national game, in prime time with no competition, Aikman not only was spot- on with his analyses, he was more than willing to criticize play calling, performance and officiating.
Presenting your convictions and then sticking to them is a must for a top analyst, and Aikman came through for viewers the way he did as a three-time Super Bowl champion quarterback for Dallas.
“I think after 17 years of doing it somewhat the same way, this was an opportunity to kind of change up my schedule,” says Aikman, who at first had some reservations about balancing his family and business responsibilities.
“I think that is fair to say ‘energized.’ It felt more like an event, being the only game, and in prime time. On Sunday afternoon, espe-
cially for the late game, it sure seems like that’s when most people prefer to view football. But the prime time has a little bigger of a feel to it.
“We did not feel as restricted to the action on the field; we never feel completely restricted. It certainly freed me up and allowed me to have even more fun within the broadcast.”
Fox also wound up with some very solid matchups with intriguing storylines. Yes, NBC had the season opener, a Thursday nighter
hosted by the champion Eagles in a rematch of a January playoff game with the Falcons. That wound up 1812, eerily similar to Philadelphia’s previous win over Atlanta. It also, of course, didn’t have two teams coming off short weeks.
Then, Fox prospered with three of the better games of the entire season, games that wouldn’t have had the same cachet later in the schedule.
Cincinnati’s 34-23 victory over Baltimore — look at where those two teams reside now! — was enter-
taining, with Andy Dalton torching the Ravens with four touchdown passes. It also had the added spice of the Bengals having knocked the Ravens out of playoff contention in the 2017 finale.
A week later — and this was Aikman at his best, even if Jets fans swear playby-play voice Joe Buck was outwardly rooting for the hosts — the Browns finally got a win, with Baker Mayfield stamping himself as an emerging force in just the third game of his rookie year.