Troy Aikman would rather be in Dallas.
Late into Sunday’s wild-card playoff game between the Buccaneers and Eagles, which Aikman and Joe Buck were broadcasting, Buck did a promo for the 49ers-Cowboys game that kicked off around 4:40. Normally such a matchup would be on Fox, which has the NFC rights, but this week, the premier playoff game is on CBS, with Jim Nantz and fellow former Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo getting the call.
“It’s gonna be a great game,” Aikman said. “I mean a really good game. There’s a lot of people that would like to be calling that game.”
There’s been a lot of hype around Niners-Cowboys, which should be a ratings juggernaut as both teams have sizable fan bases across the country. Philadelphia-Tampa Bay, a game that was never competitive, didn’t have the same sway.
Buck guffawed, before returning to the action. He and Aikman were forced to play out the string in Tampa’s blowout 31-15 win.
Next time, perhaps Fox will take the advice from its top analyst and go with the Cowboys game.