In addition to the quotage from the NFL Today, we have ratings news where CBS declares the NFL Today as the most watched NFL pregame show in the first two weeks of the season, plus yesterday’s Alabama-Arkansas game did well for CBS.
NEWS, NOTES & QUOTES FROM CBS SPORTS’ “THE NFL TODAY” WITH JAMES BROWN, DAN MARINO, SHANNON SHARPE, BILL COWHER AND BOOMER ESIASON FOR WEEK 3 ON SEPTEMBER 26? CBS Sports’ THE NFL TODAY, is the highest-rated pre-game show through the first two weeks of the NFL season earning an average national household rating/share of 3.4/9, up 36% from last year’s 2.5/6.?”SEC ON CBS” RATINGS ROLL WITH ALABAMA’S WIN OVER ARKANSAS, UP 145%CBS Sports’ coverage of the SEC ON CBS on Saturday, Sept. 25, which saw No. 1-seeded Alabama’s 24-20 win over No. 10-seeded Arkansas, earned an overnight household rating/share of 5.4/13, up 145% from last year’s 2.2/5 (Arkansas-Alabama). Yesterday’s 5.4/13 was the highest rating for a regular-season college football game on CBS in the metered markets (excluding the SEC Championship games in ’09 and ’08) since a 5.5/12 on 11/08/08 for No. 1 Alabama at No. 15 LSU. Alabama beat LSU 27-20 in overtime.?QUICK HITS(On early-season headlines)DAN MARINO: I’m looking at the Minnesota Vikings, the team that is in a must-win situation. Brett Favre is struggling…Does Brad Childress have the guts in this game against Detroit if he struggles, and they go in at halftime and he’s thrown some interceptions and they’re looking 0-3 in the face – does he have the guts to sit Brett Favre? If they go 0-3, they might have to do something.BILL COWHER: Kansas City, Chicago, and Tampa Bay – They’re 2-0 and today they all play at home. If they win, they go to 3-0. These are three teams that need to start thinking they’re better than they really are. Confidence is a dangerous thing, and they can become dangerous teams.SHANNON SHARPE: I’m thinking of the Houston Texans…In order to get to the playoffs we have to beat the Indianapolis Colts. They took care of business. They go on the road to Washington, fall behind by 17, and win that ballgame. Now we get a true test to see if they’re for real. They get the Cowboys and the Cowboys have been underachieving this year but you know they’ll be ready to play. If the Houston Texans go to 3-0…I’m going on the record right now, right now – they will win the AFC South, and they will be in the playoffs.(On Jets)BOOMER ESIASON: This is the perception of a frat house gone wild. It all coincides with the hiring of Rex Ryan. You’re a head coach in this league, and unfortunately it falls to the feet of him. And Rex Ryan was embroiled in the controversy at an MMA fight. So if you ask me, you have to look at the hiring of Rex Ryan, and wonder why the Baltimore Ravens didn’t hire him. He was there for 10 years and they went outside the organization and got John Harbaugh. I would play for Rex Ryan. But I think this has to fall at his feet.(Is Jimmy Clausen the answer to the Panther’s quarterback search?)
SHARPE: What is the question? Is this the same Jimmy Clausen that couldn’t beat the Naval Academy last year at Notre Dame? And now John Fox is pinning his hopes on Jimmy Clausen to save his job? I advise you not to do any remodeling in your house if I were you.(On Dallas Cowboys)MARINO: I look at teams that are in trouble and in turmoil – the Dallas Cowboys. They’re in a tough position today playing the Houston Texans. They’re looking at 0-3 right in the face. If they go 0-3 they’ll panic down there. They’re a team that doesn’t play with that urgency. When you see them they just don’t have that urgency.(On Brett Favre)COWHER: They’re out of sorts because you have the tight end and Adrian Peterson as the one and two receiver. He’s got a better rapport with the receivers in his jeans commercial.(On Jets Braylon Edwards)SHARPE: The Jets have a system in place where you can call, if you’ve had something to drink. You call this. They’ll send a car. They’ll come pick you up. There are 13,000 cabs in Manhattan alone. There wasn’t one going your way? It’s just ridiculous that he put himself in this situation.(On whether quarterbacks are protected too much)COWHER: Bottom line, yes, they’re protected too much. But that is the way the league is.? “INSIDE THE GAME” WITH “NFL TODAY GENERAL MANAGER” CHARLEY CASSERLY(On quarterback situations around the League)CASSERLY: Keep an eye on the Arizona Cardinals. Derek Anderson has struggled through the first two games, which is not a surprise to me. The guy to watch is Max Hall. He outplayed Anderson and (Matt) Lineart in the preseason. To me this would be the biggest surprise of all quarterback changes. He was undrafted coming out of college last spring. Went to camp as the last guy on the depth chart. Max Hall, may not be long.
We have Fox NFL Sunday with some video next.
