CBS gets lucky with Ross Tucker calling Eagles-Panthers

Ross Tucker’s schedule was upended this week when news broke that Jalen Hurts won’t play in Sunday’s Eagles-Panthers game due to a blood clot.

While the network will miss out on a young quarterback showcase featuring Hurts and Wynnewood native Bryce Young, CBS got a bit lucky assigning Tucker to call the game.

“I think I’m probably the world’s foremost expert on Tanner McKee,” Tucker said. “I’m almost like his personal color commentator at this point.”

In addition to his role on CBS’s No. 2 NFL booth, Tucker has been which McKee started and had a solid game.

“Up until this preseason, all he had ever really done was play well,” Tucker said. “But then, this preseason was just interesting.”

Facing competition from Andy Dalton, McKee struggled at times during the summer. He initially lost the backup quarterback job, but moved back up the depth chart after Dalton’s interception in the end zone against the Chicago Bears in Week 3. Dalton was released the following week.

Sunday will be the first chance for Tucker to call an Eagles game since his promotion in the offseason by CBS as part of a shakeup forced by Tony Romo’s arrest and subsequent departure.

Other than calling better games, having a lot more cameras at his disposal, and having more people tune in, Tucker said there isn’t much difference between calling the No. 2 game for CBS alongside Ian Eagle and the No. 6 game with Phillies announcer Tom McCarthy.

“Every week, a friend of mine will send me Bill Simmons and Cousin Sal saying something good about me, or Ryen Russillo, or Dan Le Batard,” Tucker said. “I put a lot of time into it. I love it, and the fact more people are getting to enjoy it this year is really awesome.”

While social media has yet to find an announcer it likes, sports media pundits have largely praised Tucker’s ability to transform NFL jargon into insightful analysis, sprinkled with a bit of humor. Instead of simply repeating what happened during a play, Tucker focuses on the why, a word he has written, circled, and underlined at the top of his notes each week.

In Week 1, it was explaining how Houston Texans wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson’s shoulder pads caused him to miss a catch. In Week 4, it was immediately knowing why an apparent fumble by Patriots punt returner Marcus Jones remained New England ball.

“Every week I feel like he’s been on top of the key moments,” Eagle said. “But he also has great energy on big plays. ... If there’s a shocking play on the field, I think you want to sense that shock from the announcers, and I think Ross rides that roller coaster really well.

“The analysis, the insight, and the energy ... I do think it’s made him unique,” Eagle added.

Unfortunately, Sunday’s game might be Tucker’s only chance to call an Eagles game on TV this season. The Birds are scheduled to play on CBS in Week 9 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but that’s slated to be a national broadcast featuring Jim Nantz and J.J. Watt.

Heading into games, NFL announcers are provided an almost unending list of facts and figures about the game they’re calling.

Tucker said one stat that took him by surprise was the number of times the Eagles have run play-action plays under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion — just 10.4% of snaps, easily the lowest in the league. The Panthers are on the flip side, with 20.9% of their snaps featuring play action, second most in the league.

“I thought it was going to be a big part of their offense,” Tucker said. “Maybe it still eventually will be.”

Eagle said the stat that jumped out to him was the Eagles goingthree-and-out on 45% of their drives, the worst in the NFL. They also have the third-worst offense in the league, averaging just 262 yards per game, trailing just the Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans.

“The feeling going into the season was their offense would still be dynamic,” Eagle said. “With Jalen Hurts, you just don’t think three-and-outs are going to be a common result in this offense.”

Eagles-Panthers will air on CBS, though parts of the Jersey Shore that don’t get CBS3 might be stuck watching the New York Jets take on the New England Patriots.

The same goes for Birds fans in northeastern Maryland, though they’ll get Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers instead.

As for streaming, you can watch Eagles-Panthers on Paramount+ if you live in and around Philadelphia (or any local market carrying the game). The same goes for NFL+ and any other TV streaming service that carries CBS, including YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV.

The game can also be heard on 94.1 WIP, with Merrill Reese — in his 50th season as the voice of the Eagles — calling the game alongside former Birds receiver Mike Quick.

The Spanish radio call — featuring Rickie Ricardo, Oscar Budejen, and Dave Gerhardt — can be heard on the Eagles website and on a handful of stations, including La Mega 105.7 FM in Philadelphia, 93.9 FM in Atlantic City, and 103.3 FM in Vineland/Millville.

Here are the broadcast details:

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