Not All of Best Teams Remain in NFL Playoffs

While the eight teams alive entering this weekend's Divisional Playoffs represent the best the NFL has to offer on the field, the same might not be true of all the broadcast pairings at this point of the season.

Six games remain in the the NFL season -- four this weekend, two next and, of course, the Super Bowl on Feb. 3. One broadcast tandem,  Jim Nantz and Phil Simms of CBS Sports, will cover half of those games.

They might be, at best, the second-best broadcast team remaining in the playoffs, though. And the NFL's two best color commentators will not draw another assignment this season.

Here's the weekend lineup:

Saturday

Baltimore at Denver (4:30 p.m., CBS) / Greg Gumbel-Dan Dierdorf
Green Bay at San Francisco (8 p.m., Fox) / Joe Buck-Troy Aikman

Sunday

Seattle at Atlanta (1 p.m., Fox) / Thom Brennaman-Brian Billick
Houston at New England (4:30 p.m., CBS) / Jim Nantz-Phil Simms

All four TV tandems have strengths, with the Brennaman-Billick duo deservedly getting its first playoff assignment. And you could make a fairly strong case that that team is better than Nantz-Simms.

Overall, the four play-by-play men are solid pros who avoid hype and keep game broadcasts moving. Of the four, Buck's the best with Brennaman next and Nantz and Gumble behind them on my personal list.

Among the color commentators, an alphabetical list summarizes what they bring on gameday. That means top to bottom it's Aikman, Billick, Diedorf and Simms. As Billick, the former Baltimore Ravens coach, has toned down his smartest-man-in-the-room routine, his work has steadily improved.

Still, NFL fans will miss Chris Collinsworth and Mike Mayock of NBC Sports during the most important games of the season. Collinsworth is the best in the league at what he does, and Mayock is not far behind. They're always prepared, and both have opinions based on reporting and research. They do not just rant.

Next week, Buck-Aikman and Nantz-Simms get the conference championship game assignments, and Nantz-Simms will complete the season at the Super Bowl.

After 14 standout years as quarterback for the New York Giants, including an MVP performance in Super Bowl XXI, Simms has been the lead color commentator for CBS Sports' coverage of the NFL since 1998 and this season's assignment will mark his seventh Super Bowl assignment. (It's his fifth with CBS after working two for NBC Sports earlier in his career.) Still, his penchant for not offering an opinion or waffling sometimes offsets his wonderful experience and knowledge.