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When ESPN finally dumped Joe Theismann (a/k/a Joey Sunshine) from the MNF broadcasts and Michael Irvin from Sunday NFL Countdown, we were concerned that we'd have no one on the network's NFL coverage to complain about. Other than Sean Salisbury.
Enter Emmitt Smith.
The NFL's all-time rushing leader has provided plenty of fodder for criticism, from his inability to conjugate verbs to his periodic Porky Pig moments to his lack of basic knowledge regarding things like player names and team records.
As to the issue with not knowing names and player records, some basic preparation work is all that he needs. And it's our understand based on conversations with multiple folks in the industry that Emmitt simply doesn't -- and won't -- do it.
Indeed, we've heard from several folks that Emmitt's exit from NFLN was due in large part to his refusal to put in the time away from the stuidio. They also tell us that Emmitt's struggles in Bristol are no surprise, based on his limited stint with NFLN.
Most recently, Emmitt coined a potential new "boom goes the dynamite" on Sunday by proclaiming on-air that "you cannot change the stripes of a leopard." And that gem followed a far more embarrassing moment for Emmitt, during which he said with confidence that San Diego is the most likely 0-2 team to lose in Week Three. As the video of the incident shows, Chris Berman tried to run some quick interference for Emmitt, but to no avail.
Video Link: http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/video?id=3032764
Of course, no amount of prep can address the fact that Emmitt simply doesn't have the chops to be a broadcaster. And the fact that ESPN would nevertheless expose him to a mass audience is somewhat offensive, since ESPN apparently thinks that most of us won't will be willing to overlook Smith's gross inadequacies because, hey, he's the NFL's all-time leading rusher.
Enter Emmitt Smith.
The NFL's all-time rushing leader has provided plenty of fodder for criticism, from his inability to conjugate verbs to his periodic Porky Pig moments to his lack of basic knowledge regarding things like player names and team records.
As to the issue with not knowing names and player records, some basic preparation work is all that he needs. And it's our understand based on conversations with multiple folks in the industry that Emmitt simply doesn't -- and won't -- do it.
Indeed, we've heard from several folks that Emmitt's exit from NFLN was due in large part to his refusal to put in the time away from the stuidio. They also tell us that Emmitt's struggles in Bristol are no surprise, based on his limited stint with NFLN.
Most recently, Emmitt coined a potential new "boom goes the dynamite" on Sunday by proclaiming on-air that "you cannot change the stripes of a leopard." And that gem followed a far more embarrassing moment for Emmitt, during which he said with confidence that San Diego is the most likely 0-2 team to lose in Week Three. As the video of the incident shows, Chris Berman tried to run some quick interference for Emmitt, but to no avail.
Video Link: http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/video?id=3032764
Of course, no amount of prep can address the fact that Emmitt simply doesn't have the chops to be a broadcaster. And the fact that ESPN would nevertheless expose him to a mass audience is somewhat offensive, since ESPN apparently thinks that most of us won't will be willing to overlook Smith's gross inadequacies because, hey, he's the NFL's all-time leading rusher.
