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2027 NFL broadcast teams predicted by AI as Joe Buck gets new partner
ESPN commentator Joe Buck stands on the field

Lead NFL broadcast teams across several major networks are expected to look different come the 2027 season.

Outside of what has been taking place on the field, one of the biggest ongoing NFL talking points involves the future of longtime broadcast partners and current ESPN Monday Night Football commentators Joe Buck and Troy Aikman.

Buck will stay on with ESPN beyond 2027, while Aikman is expected to leave the network having not been offered a new contract, which has led to a dispute with his employer and broadcast partner of 25 years.

With several pieces of the NFL broadcasting puzzle set to be up in the air this offseason, we asked Google Gemini to predict each major network’s lead NFL broadcast team in 2027, as well as who will fill in for the secondary teams at CBS and FOX.

ESPN: Joe Buck and Greg Olsen

It is looking like Buck will have a new broadcast partner for the first time in more than 25 years come the 2027 NFL season, and Olsen, currently on FOX’s No. 2 team, appears to be the likeliest suitor.

Olsen has received widespread praise for his work with FOX, and even called Super Bowl LVII before Tom Brady took his role as the network’s lead analyst the following season. With his FOX contract set to expire this offseason, it makes perfect sense that Olsen will transition into another high-profile job, this time alongside Buck at the Worldwide Leader.

NBC: Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth

NBC’s commentary duo of Tirico and Collinsworth, who have called Sunday Night Football together since 2022, is not going anywhere.

Collinsworth is tied up with NBC through the 2029 NFL season, while Tirico is the face of the network’s coverage across several sports, including the NBA and Olympics.

CBS No. 1 team: Jim Nantz and JJ Watt

Nantz lost longtime broadcast partner Tony Romo just weeks before the start of the 2026 NFL season after the former Cowboys quarterback was arrested and charged with OWI. That meant Watt, previously on CBS’ No. 2 team, was elevated.

Broadcaster Greg Olsen walks the field
Greg Olsen is expected to be a sought-after free agent in 2027 -Credit:Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images

Watt has since been handed a multi-year extension to remain the network’s lead color analyst, so he’ll be there in 2027 and beyond, squashing prior reports indicating someone like Aikman or Olsen could take his spot.

CBS No. 2 team: Kevin Harlan and Trent Green

Harlan and Green are currently the No. 3 team on CBS, and AI predicts the pair will be elevated to No. 2 slot in 2027 as a result of wider changes at the network, which we’ll get to below…

FOX No. 1 team: Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady

Burkhardt and Brady, who is the highest-paid NFL broadcaster in the business with a 10-year, $375 million deal taking him through the 2032 season, will remain FOX’s top team in 2027.

FOX No. 2 team: Joe Davis and Drew Brees

Davis, perhaps best known as FOX’s lead play-by-play voice for MLB, will get a new partner in 2027 in the form of Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees. Brees, currently on FOX’s No. 3 team, will replace Olsen in the booth and form a new duo with Davis.

Amazon Prime Video: Ian Eagle and Kirk Herbstreit

Another NFL broadcast booth that will look different in 2027 will be on Thursday Night Football, as legendary play-by-play voice Al Michaels, currently on a one-year deal with Amazon Prime Video, will call it quits after this season.

Replacing him will be Ian Eagle, who currently serves as the No. 2 play-by-play commentator at CBS but has ties to Amazon through his work on NBA broadcasts. Eagle will partner with Herbstreit, who signed a multi-year extension to stay with Prime earlier this year.

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