5 former Tennessee Vols who should replace Jason Witten on Monday Night Football
In what is becoming an annual tradition, The Sporting News reported on Monday that Tennessee Vols legend Peyton Manning won't be an option to replace outgoing color commentator Jason Witten on ESPN's Monday Night Football next season. According to The Sporting News, Manning met with ESPN executives, but a formal offer was never made to […]
In what is becoming an annual tradition, The Sporting News reported on Monday that Tennessee Vols legend Peyton Manning won't be an option to replace outgoing color commentator Jason Witten on ESPN's Monday Night Football next season.
According to The Sporting News, Manning met with ESPN executives, but a formal offer was never made to the two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback.
ESPN is searching for a new analyst to replace Witten, who returned to the NFL after just one season in the booth.
Considering that ESPN's last two Monday Night Football analysts had significant ties to Tennessee (Witten played at UT and Jon Gruden was a graduate assistant under Johnny Majors, plus all the "Grumor" non-sense), and their pursuit of Manning, it made me wonder if any former Vols would be right for the job.
Five former Tennessee players quickly came to mind. Some of them for logical reasons, others purely for entertainment purposes.
Here are the five former Vols I think should be candidates to replace Witten on Monday night football.
Former Vols who should find a new home on Monday Night Football
Arian Foster: There aren't many former players, Vol or not, that are more intriguing, and polarizing, than Arian Foster. If ESPN wants to branch out with some widespread philosophical views during football games, Foster is their guy. Who could forget the time Foster debated on Twitter whether or not he could beat a wolf in a street fight. Now imagine that kind of content on Monday Night Football. Let's just hope he leaves the pterodactyl talk out of the booth.
Albert Haynesworth: Haynesworth has never been one to hold back his true feelings. He's pretty much an open book — even when he should't be. The thought of Haynesworth getting a public forum every Monday night to discuss whatever he wants is exciting. But I have a feeling ESPN would go straight into panic mode every time Haynesworth started talking about things other than the actual football game being played.
Curt Maggitt: I absolutely loved Curt Maggitt's interviews during his time at Tennessee. He was always candid and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to his sessions with reporters. I think he could've been a much bigger star on Rocky Top than he ended up being. But injuries, and the coaches he played under, prevented him from reaching his ceiling at UT. Maggitt is still pursuing a playing career in football, but I definitely think he could have a future in broadcasting if he chooses to take that path.
Charles Davis: This one would absolutely make the most sense. Davis is already an accomplished analyst, working for Fox and appearing in multiple editions of Madden as one of the lead commentators. Davis is one of the more popular color commentators in the sport, so I think he'd be a hit on Monday Night Football. He's knowledgeable and he's a pro when it comes to broadcasting. And I'm sure he'd jump at the opportunity to land with ESPN in such a prestigious role.
Matt Simms: Matt Simms is the son of Super Bowl winning quarterback Phil Simms, who is a longtime NFL analyst. The elder Simms called games for years for CBS before being replaced by Tony Romo. The younger Simms is still pursuing a career in football, but it's obvious that TV work is in his blood. But considering he has no experience, he'd need to have a Tony Romo-like knack for broadcasting to make this work. At this point, landing the next Romo is like scratching a lottery ticket — ESPN just has to hope they uncover a special talent. Perhaps that could be Matt Simms.
Featured image via Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
