A potential shakeup of The NFL Today is in the works, and CBS nearly added a veteran analyst to the crew – ESPN's Cris Carter.

According to SI's Richard Deitsch, Carter recently signed a multi-year extension to stay with ESPN, but CBS was in the market for his services for a role on Showtime's Inside the NFL and potentially The NFL Today. CBS needs to make changes to their pregame show, which is continuing to get smashed in the ratings by Fox NFL Sunday, but I'm not sure how much of an effect Carter would have had on increasing their ratings.

CBS has kept their pregame show static over the last few years. The last major move they made was adding Bill Cowher to the set in 2007, a year after James Brown replaced Greg Gumbel as the show's host. That same crew of Brown, Cowher, Shannon Sharpe, Dan Marino, and Boomer Esiason have been together for the last seven seasons, and aside from swapping out Charley Casserly for Jason La Canfora in 2012, nothing has changed. In contrast, Fox NFL Sunday has also kept their panel intact, but has continually added new elements over the years with cameos by Jay Glazer, Rob Riggle, Erin Andrews, and Mike Pereira all popping up recently.

Replacing an analyst or two isn't going to tilt the balance in favor of CBS, especially when someone like Carter is one of those replacements. Why not look at some of the talent on That Other Pregame Show that's already in house at CBS Sports Network? It got pretty solid reviews in its 2013 freshman season, and some of its talent could provide a fresh jolt for a show that's obviously looking to reboot.

[Sports Illustrated]

About Joe Lucia

I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.

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