He’s no Dandy Don, but will Troy Aikman be the next Cowboys QB to pick up the ‘Monday Night’ mantle? | KSherringtonDMN
, elevating his per annum just beyond Tony Romo’s 10-year, $180 million bonanza at CBS. Dak Prescott will tell you it’s good to be a quarterback for the Cowboys, but sometimes it’s better to be aNo one knew the gist of the above better than Don Meredith, the OC, or Original Cowboy. He not only made himself bigger in the booth than he was on the field, he helped create a monster on Mondays.franchise needs. Aikman will have his work cut out for him matching the impact of the first one.
The mere hint of Meredith’s soft Texas drawl provokes a smile. Teamed with the combative Cosell and down-the-middle Frank Gifford they turned Monday night into must-see TV and helped the NFL eclipse MLB at last as the biggest draw in televised sports. Meredith was quick on his feet, but not always quick enough. Once, Cosell, ill and maybe a little oiled, threw up on Dandy’s boots.“Something just came up.”
Even if you know little about Meredith’s broadcasting legacy, maybe you know he signaled the effective end of a contest by warbling the opening lines of a song from a Texas singer who’d first performed it at the Esquire Ballroom in Houston.Turn out the lights, the party’s over,Of course, it wasn’t all candy and nuts. Meredith, as Landry complained, relied on talent more than preparation. Cosell finally said something he shouldn’t have.