Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, December 21, 1993 TAG: 9312210040
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: FRANK COONEY SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Now that Fox Television has stolen coverage of the National Conference from CBS Sports beginning next season and NBC Sports has retained the rights to American Conference games, Madden could be looking for a new home.
"I don't know what CBS is going to do, but I'm going to stay with football," said Madden, who has won 10 Emmy Awards as the network's top pro football analyst. "My deal with CBS is no football, no Madden."
Although he was "shocked" when he first heard of the bold move by Fox, Madden said the thought of making a change was exciting.
Madden has been with CBS since shortly after giving up his job as head coach of the Oakland Raiders in 1979.
"I like CBS and what we have created," Madden said. "I had no thoughts of doing anything else. Then Fox drops this bomb and I start considering the alternatives.
"Once the shock wore off, I realized that sometimes change is good. I left the Raiders after being a head coach for 10 years. The change was good then. Now I've been 15 years with CBS and maybe change will be exciting."
The possibilities are vast for Madden, whose earthy, slam-bang style simplified nuances of the game. His intensive preparation, a carry-over from his days as head coach of the Raiders, redefined how television covered pro football.
"That's what I mean by a challenge," he said. "When I took this job, I realized it gave me the chance to do what I loved most - explain football, even though I wasn't coaching."
Madden mused Saturday about the possibility of going to Fox or NBC.
"If CBS is out, then I'll be wide-open, I suppose," he said, before his network officially went out of the pro football business. "If it's time to move on, it's time to move on and I'll consider the options when they come up."
Madden smiled at suggestions that he could join Bart Simpson as a key figure with Fox. He also admitted Fox's bold move surprised him.
"We knew Fox was going to be a player and all that, but every other time there was a new player it was a small part of the package," Madden said. "When ABC got Monday night, ESPN and TNT got Sunday night. So you figure Fox would get one game. So when they got the whole enchilada, I was shocked."
After he left coaching and before he became the best analyst in pro football, Madden had several other offers, including the role of "Coach" in a pilot for what would become the "Cheers" TV series.
"They told me if the pilot was rejected, then it would be just shown as a TV movie," Madden said. "They said if it was accepted, that I would have a full-time job as an actor in the series.
"The way I saw it, I either would do something that would fail or become a job that kept me too busy to stay in football. Of course, I didn't know at the time that `Cheers' would become one of the most successful series in TV history."
Or that he would become television's best pro football analyst.
"But I learned not to close off your options," he said. " . . . I will keep my options open until the right things comes along. But it will be in football; that's the one thing that is for sure."
by CNB