As he prepares to work his first season alongside J.J. Watt, Ian Eagle insists they can be more than just the most physically fit broadcast booth in the NFL.
Watt will make his debut as a game analyst for CBS alongside Eagle this week, when the New York Jets host the Pittsburgh Steelers in Aaron Rodgers’ return to MetLife Stadium. Thursday morning, Eagle joined WFAN’s midday hosts Brandon Tierney and Sal Licata to preview the game and discuss what he expects from Watt as his new full-time partner.
“I’m hearing from a lot of people, and everybody seems to be saying, ‘You’re the most yolked booth.’ And I know! I’m not gonna deny it,” Eagle admitted to Tierney and Licata. “We have a very similar workout routine.”
The not-so-imposing play-by-play voice may have been joking, but take a quick look at what other NFL booths are putting on camera. Watt might just pull enough weight to help them earn the title of “most yolked.” Regardless, they have higher aspirations, because it’s not just Watt’s fitness that has Eagle excited about his new partner at CBS.
“The whole lead-up to it has been fantastic,” Eagle continued on WFAN. “He’s very prepared. He obviously has the experience as a Hall-of-Fame player. And the added part of this job is, what kind of perspective do you have? What kind of takes do you have? Are you opinionated — which he is — and can you back it up? And the little extra secret sauce is he’s got a tremendous sense of humor. He’s self-deprecating, he wants to be a really good teammate, so far so good…I can already tell, he checks all the boxes.”
That’s a very different “secret sauce” than the one Jim Nantz has said he possesses with Tony Romo at CBS. Nantz previously claimed eye contact is the “secret sauce” to his success with Romo. Time will tell which secret sauce resonates better with the audience.
CBS decided to shake up their No. 2 NFL booth earlier this year when they replaced Eagle’s partner of five years, Charles Davis, with Watt. Davis will call NFL games with Andrew Catalon and Jason McCourty this season, before succeeding Gary Danielson as the lead college football analyst for CBS in 2026.
Watt already spoke glowingly about the chemistry he has with Eagle. And Eagle seems similarly excited about now being part of the “most yolked booth” with Watt.