The CBS Sports booth featuring Jim Nantz and J.J. Watt came in for some praise in Week 8 after the pair stopped short of skirting around the Kansas City Chiefs' decision to sign Justin Tucker to the practice squad.
Nantz and Watt were on call for the Chiefs' Week 8 showdown against the Denver Broncos and made it a point to note why so many fans were furious at the franchise for giving Tucker a shot at making the roster.
After kicker Harrison Butker converted a 45-yard field goal to give the Chiefs a second-quarter 17-13 lead, Nantz and Watt succinctly addressed the elephant in the room when it came to Tucker.
"One of the big stories this past week is because of the way (Harrison) Butker has struggled going all the way back to the start of last season, they signed kicker Justin Tucker to their practice squad. Just last year, Tucker had to serve a 10-game suspension for violating the league's personal conduct policy," Nantz told viewers .
"Given the multitude of allegations of nonconsensual behavior, Tucker's signing this week just drew a sharp rebuke in Kansas City and really all over the NFL landscape."
Watt also added his two cents to Nantz's observation, "And understandably, Andy Reid and the Chiefs organization at their weekly press conference spent at least half of it answering questions about it."
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During this week's segment of the "Traina Thoughts" podcast, Traina broke down why Nantz and Watt's comments were a rarity in the sports broadcasting world when it comes to touchy subjects.
"Nantz and Watt did something you rarely, rarely hear announcers do," Traina said . "They actually gave you some detail.
"You don't have to spend 10 minutes on it. You don't have to share your opinions on it. You don't have to rip the player to shreds, but you give the full facts, the full story, some detail, and you don't just say the incident or the situation or the off-field controversy. So, that was well done, I thought, by Nantz and Watt on CBS."
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The Baltimore Ravens released Tucker in May 2025 after 13 seasons, which included five First-Team All-Pro and three Second-Team All-Pro selections, seven Pro Bowl nods, being named to the 2010s NFL All-Decade Team and a Super Bowl.
A month later, the NFL suspended Tucker for 10 games after several allegations of inappropriate behavior during massage sessions.
Tucker held tryouts with the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts, but went unsigned. After Harrison Butker's struggles continued into 2026, the Chiefs signed Tucker to the team's practice squad, prompting pushback from fans and analysts. The Tucker story will likely continue stealing headline inches after Butker's 54-yard miss in the fourth quarter against Denver allowed the Broncos to drive down the field and score the go-ahead touchdown to win the contest 28-24. Butker has missed six field goals this season, which is the most in the league, earning a PFN Kicker Impact score of 58.3 (No. 30 in the NFL). Butker's kicking woes will likely create a predicament for Reid, with Tucker waiting in the wings.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network .
