CHRIS BERMAN GOING FOR BIG 5-0, A FIRST AT ESPN

 Of all things ... “Boomer” ...

Who knew? ESPN announced this week that CHRIS 

BERMAN had agreed to a contract extension 

through 2029 … that would make him the network’s 

first 50-year employee … Roll your eyes if you were 

unaware he still worked there. Granted, we haven’t 

watched the 24-hour all-sports talkfest like we used 

to … back in the day when the “Boomer” was most 

visible among a very talented group of announcers 

that also included DAN PATRICK, BOB LEYand, 

yes, even STUART SCOTT and KEITH 

OLBERMANN (who went off the rails and became 

a political whacko). But, we thought Berman was 

retired (kicking and screaming) several years ago 

when his once-unique shtick no longer was 

welcomed by viewers … I mean, how many times 

did we hear Berman say stuff like … “ERIC 

‘Sleeping With The’ BIENEMY” and “BERT ‘BE 

HOME’ BLYLEVEN” ... before it became once too 

many? One of sportscasting’s good guys – trust me – 

like most people (especially in a job that depends so 

much on creativity) he stayed around too long … and 

couldn’t admit it, even to himself, that he had long 

since lost his fastball … So what have his on-air 

duties been recently? Glad you asked. Answer: Not 

much, as it turned out … from a Google request we 

learned he resumed hosting “NFL Halftime” in 2019 

(after a 14-year layoff) on … ESPN+. Oh, and ESPN 

plans to use him when it has the Super Bowl for the 

first time in 2027 … Off the air, he has emceed the 

Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremonies 

since 1979… and plays bit roles in movies like 

“Happy Gilmore 2,” coming soon on Netflix … “It’s 

mind-blowing to think I would be here for 50 years, 

which is two-thirds of my lifetime,” Berman, 70, was 

quoted as saying.

Until next time ...