James Brown doesn’t always refer to himself as Big Chocolate

Did James Brown accidentally reveal his nickname because he didn’t know his mic was hot? Or did James Brown know his mic was hot, so he happily revealed his nickname?

With the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs kicking off at 9:30 a.m. ET Sunday morning, some NFL fans were concerned about the rest of the games being too lackluster. But when it came time for brown to go through a halftime highlight package on CBS, the longtime NFL host jazzed it up in an epic way.

James Brown can thank Nate Burleson for his nickname pic.twitter.com/dgAUKaIqXL

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 6, 2023

“J.B. is live, huh? Big Chocolate,” Brown could be heard saying before quickly welcoming viewers to the halftime report. “And hello everyone and welcome to our New York studio and the Verizon Halftime Report, as I was referencing myself.”

It’s hard to tell whether Brown knew he was on live TV or not. Obviously, he said, “J.B. is live,” but he also seemed a little caught off guard as he welcomed the audience in. The moment was not seen in every market because games break into halftime at different times, but if you were watching the Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints, you were likely to hear Brown refer to himself as Big Chocolate.

Later in the day, we would find out James Brown doesn’t always call himself Big Chocolate, but when he does, he can thank his CBS NFL Today colleague Nate Burleson. After Boomer Esiason yelled through his highlight on the postgame show, Brown called for Bill Cowher to keep everyone calm after noting, “Nate calls me Big Chocolate, I come on the air calling myself that.”

Big Chocolate was on display again on Monday, when Burleson invited Brown to discuss Sunday’s NFL storylines on CBS Mornings.

“My guy, James Brown, aka Big Chocolate,” Burleson said Brown erupted with laughter. “That’s right, I gave him that nickname.”

Surely, Brown isn’t the only NFL on CBS panelist with a nickname. With Big Chocolate now being revealed, we desperately need to know what names Burleson graced Bill Cowher, Boomer Esiason and Phil Simms with.

[NFL on CBS]