Madden ends legendary broadcasting career
Rachel Cohen- AP
Issue date: 4/17/09 Section: Sports
John Madden is retiring from football, where his enthusiastic, down-to-earth style made him one of sports' most popular broadcasters for three decades.
The Hall of Fame coach spent the last three seasons on NBC's "Sunday Night Football." His final telecast was the Super Bowl in February.
"You know at some point you have to do this - I got to that point," Madden said on his Bay Area radio show Thursday. "The thing that made it hard is not because I'm second guessing, 'is it the right decision?' But I enjoyed it so damn much.
"I enjoyed the game and the players and the coaches and the film and the travel and everything."
Cris Collinsworth will replace Madden, moving over from the network's studio show, NBC Sports chief Dick Ebersol said. Collinsworth filled in when Madden took a game off last October.
Ebersol called Madden "absolutely the best sports broadcaster who ever lived."
Madden said his health is fine, but at the age of 73, he wanted to spend more time with his family. His 50th wedding anniversary is this fall, and his five grandchildren are old enough to notice when he's gone.
"If you hated part of it or if something was wrong, it'd be easy," Madden said.
Madden's blue-collar style and love for in-the-trenches football endeared him to fans. His "Madden NFL Football" is the top-selling sports video game of all time.
Madden is reluctant to fly and often traveled to games in a specially equipped bus.
Longtime broadcast partner Al Michaels said Madden will have a unique place in pro football history.
"No one has made the sport more interesting, more relevant and more enjoyable to watch and listen to than John," Michaels said in a statement. "There's never been anyone like him and he's been the gold standard for analysts for almost three decades."
Madden began his pro football career as a linebacker coach at Oakland in 1967 and was named head coach two years later, at 33 the youngest coach in what was then the American Football League.
The Hall of Fame coach spent the last three seasons on NBC's "Sunday Night Football." His final telecast was the Super Bowl in February.
"You know at some point you have to do this - I got to that point," Madden said on his Bay Area radio show Thursday. "The thing that made it hard is not because I'm second guessing, 'is it the right decision?' But I enjoyed it so damn much.
"I enjoyed the game and the players and the coaches and the film and the travel and everything."
Cris Collinsworth will replace Madden, moving over from the network's studio show, NBC Sports chief Dick Ebersol said. Collinsworth filled in when Madden took a game off last October.
Ebersol called Madden "absolutely the best sports broadcaster who ever lived."
Madden said his health is fine, but at the age of 73, he wanted to spend more time with his family. His 50th wedding anniversary is this fall, and his five grandchildren are old enough to notice when he's gone.
"If you hated part of it or if something was wrong, it'd be easy," Madden said.
Madden's blue-collar style and love for in-the-trenches football endeared him to fans. His "Madden NFL Football" is the top-selling sports video game of all time.
Madden is reluctant to fly and often traveled to games in a specially equipped bus.
Longtime broadcast partner Al Michaels said Madden will have a unique place in pro football history.
"No one has made the sport more interesting, more relevant and more enjoyable to watch and listen to than John," Michaels said in a statement. "There's never been anyone like him and he's been the gold standard for analysts for almost three decades."
Madden began his pro football career as a linebacker coach at Oakland in 1967 and was named head coach two years later, at 33 the youngest coach in what was then the American Football League.
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