Shortly after the end of his prolific career as an NFL quarterback, Phil Simms joined NBC Sports, where he called two Super Bowls alongside announcer Dick Enberg. This week, Simms made his return to the NBC Sports family, calling an afternoon Big Ten clash between Iowa and Indiana from Kinnick Stadium for Peacock.
Simms’ disappearance from football television over the past few years was swift, but he has popped back up on Westwood One radio broadcasts and New York Giants preseason before finally calling a big game on streaming this week.
A quarter into the Iowa-Indiana game on Peacock during the traditional Hawkeye Wave, in which fans wave to patients at the nearby children’s hospital, Simms made his presence felt in precisely the wrong way.
While the Wave aired on-screen, Simms piped through on his hot mic, talking to an NBC producer and then confusing himself:
“Whoa, what was that?”
Throughout the rest of the game, viewers on social media noticed many of the same issues that led CBS to move Simms from lead game analyst to off its roster entirely in a matter of years.
Simms made constant references to his own commentary, which became a meme during his CBS years as fans counted how many times he would say the phrase “talked about” during a game. And when Indiana kicked a field goal late in the game deep in Iowa territory, Simms strongly praised the conservative play-calling by coach Curt Cignetti.
Simms, 69, was never a fan favorite while at CBS, but he is far slower and less incisive even than his CBS days. The veteran commentator stayed quiet for long stretches even after the biggest plays of the game, and altogether drew far more criticism than praise on the Peacock call.
This was Simms’ third game of the season for the streamer.
Fortunately for Big Ten football fans, it is scheduled to be his last.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.