CBS has a long history with the NFL, one that's never been stronger after the network gained Super Bowl broadcasting rights in recent seasons.
Thanks to a switch in the NFL's Super Bowl rotation, CBS is set to host the marquee event for the third time in the last six years. That deal came about when NBC asked to trade the 2021 Super Bowl broadcast for the 2022 one, which it hoped to use as a springboard to the Winter Olympics.
CBS happily obliged. Why? Because the network received not only the 2021 Super Bowl, but also permanently moved ahead of NBC in the three-year rotation for the duration of the deal.
If you think you're having a bit of a deja vu seeing Jim Nantz and Tony Romo calling the game again, that explains why they are already back on the call. The team has called three of the last six Super Bowls along with sideline reporters Tracy Wolfson and Evan Washburn, rules analyst Gene Steratore and former NFL kicker Jay Feely.
While the CBS broadcast team will be familiar to many, some may find themselves less familiar with the network's studio crew for the event. Per usual, CBS is bringing out as much of its talent as possible for the contest, so there will be many participants in the network's coverage of the NFL's biggest event.
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Who will be in the studio for CBS for Super Bowl 58? Here's a look at their group.
Who makes up the CBS NFL studio team?
James Brown
Brown is set to be the main host of CBS's Super Bowl 58 coverage. He has been with the network since 2006 and is hosting the Super Bowl pregame show for a record 11th time.
Brown, 72, has been working in the sports industry since he got a job as the Washington Bullets' play-by-play man in 1984. He spent seven years at CBS from 1987 to 1994 before taking the host job on "Fox NFL Sunday" for 11 seasons.
Brown went to college at Harvard, where he played basketball and was drafted 62nd overall by the Hawks in 1973 but failed to make the team.
Phil Simms
Simms, 68, is a studio analyst for CBS and has been in that role since 2017. Prior to that, he had been a long-time part of CBS' No. 1 broadcasting tandem, alongside Greg Gumbel and then Jim Nantz. He was replaced by Romo after the network showed an interest in the former Cowboys quarterback.
Like Romo, Simms was a former NFL quarterback. He won two Super Bowls with the Giants and was named MVP of Super Bowl 21, a 39-20 Giants win over the Broncos. His No. 11 jersey was eventually retired by the Giants and he won the prestigious Walter Payton Man of the Year award in 1993 to close out a 15-season NFL career.
Simms, the No. 7 pick in the 1979 NFL Draft, finished his career with 33,462 passing yards, 199 touchdowns and 157 interceptions in 164 career games.
Bill Cowher
Cowher is another of the hosts for CBS' pregame coverage. The former Steelers coach provides perspective on both his six -year career as a player and his 15-year run as an NFL coach, during which he led the Steelers to a 149-90-1 record and one Super Bowl win.
Cowher retired after the 2005 NFL season at the age of 49. That allowed Mike Tomlin to take over for him and Cowher to get into broadcasting. He signed a deal with CBS in 2007 to join their broadcast team and has remained there for 14 years.
Now 66, Cowher is a Hall of Famer and one of the most respected analysts on the air.
Nate Burleson
Burleson enjoyed a productive, 11-year career as an NFL wide receiver before making the transition into broadcasting. It was seamless, and he quickly became one of the most versatile and coveted young talents on air.
Burleson, 42, has worked on shows like "Good Morning Football" but recently moved to Paramount, where he co-hosts "CBS Mornings" and serves as an analyst on "The NFL Today." Burleson also participates in Nickelodeon's "NFL Slimetime," where he is routinely given a chance to show off his comedic chops.
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Boomer Esiason
Esiason is another former player who logged more than a decade as an NFL starting quarterback. He was once a second-round pick by the Bengals, and he enjoyed an MVP season in 1988, when he threw for 3,572 yards, 28 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while leading Cincinnati to a 12-4 record.
After his retirement during the 1998 offseason, Esiason traded in his uniform for a suit and got a chance to work in broadcasting. He finished his NFL career with 37,920 yards, 247 touchdowns and 184 interceptions but posted a record of just 80-93 with the Bengals.
J.J. Watt
Watt is one of the most recent retirees on this panel, as the former Texans and Cardinals star called it quits following the 2022 NFL season. The three-time Defensive Player of the Year winner racked up a whopping 114.5 sacks during his career and is a likely Hall of Famer after making the Hall of Fame's all-2010s team.
This is Watt's first year in the booth, so it's no surprise that the 34-year-old is among the youngest analysts on air for CBS.
Jonathan Jones
Jones will serve as the NFL insider of CBS's broadcast. Jones, a UNC graduate, worked for the Charlotte Observer in his early days before moving over to Sports Illustrated. Now, he is part of CBS Sports' vast network, and will provide the latest news, notes and updates about key players and coaches in the Super Bowl and around the NFL.
Ian Eagle
Eagle will serve as the secondary host during CBS's Super Bowl coverage. The versatile play-by-play broadcaster has been a staple of the network's NFL coverage and also serves as a presence during March Madness with his calling of college basketball games.
Eagle, 54, is the father of Noah Eagle, who also works for Paramount. Noah will be calling Super Bowl 58 on Nickelodeon while his father will spell Brown throughout the day-long coverage of the major event.
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Charles Davis
Davis is the elder Eagle's game analyst counterpart and will serve as a studio analyst for the Super Bowl. The former Tennessee quarterback tried to make the change to defensive back to make it in the NFL, but spent just one season with the Cowboys before moving into broadcasting.
Davis is one of the most respected color commentators in the game and a staple of NFL Draft coverage. He is also one of the game analysts for the "Madden" video-game franchise, a role that he has held alongside Brandon Gaudin since 2017. That's why his voice is familiar to so many football fans.
Matt Ryan
Like Watt, Ryan is in his first year as a broadcaster after enjoying a lengthy NFL career. The 2016 MVP played 15 seasons, mostly for the Falcons, and enjoyed success as a traditional pocket passer in Atlanta. He posted a 124-109-1 record during his career and famously came close to winning the Super Bowl before the Patriots came back from 28-3 down to win it all.
Ryan has been getting his feet wet as a color commentator this season and while he hasn't officially retired, it doesn't seem like he is going to play again in the NFL. The opportunity to participate in a Super Bowl broadcast will provide him with valuable experience as CBS looks to groom him into a great game analyst.
Jason McCourty
McCourty is one of the NFL's McCourty twins, who both won Super Bowls with the Patriots and enjoyed fruitful NFL careers after playing at Rutgers. Now, each is going into broadcasting, but it's the younger McCourty twin who will get a chance to participate in the pre-Super Bowl 58 coverage.
Jason played with the Titans, Patriots, Browns and Dolphins during his 13-year NFL career. Since his retirement, he has become a part of NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" and is viewed as a rising star among NFL analysts, just like his brother Devin.
Kyle Brandt
Brandt is set to be a guest analyst for CBS's Super Bowl coverage. The 45-year-old is a cohost of NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" and made a name for himself with his "Angry Runs" segment, during which he breaks down the toughest runs in the NFL that week.
Brandt played running back during his college days at Princeton before he decided to pursue acting. He appeared on MTV's "The Real World" and also held a role in "Days of Our Lives" for three seasons before he joined "The Jim Rome Show" as a writer and producer.
From there, Brandt's star rose in the sports media world. Now, he gets to be part of the pre-Super Bowl entertainment from Las Vegas.
