Report: Aqib Talib Joins the Amazon Desk on Thursday Night Football

Aqib Talib could be poised to become a broadcasting star.

During his four-year stretch with the Denver Broncos, cornerback Aqib Talib was a predatory ballhawk who represented the team with aplomb in four consecutive Pro Bowls. He also happens to be the face of Denver's vaunted 'No-Fly Zone' secondary that was instrumental to the Broncos bringing home the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl 50. 

Following Denver's dismal 2017 campaign, Talib played one last full NFL season for the Los Angeles Rams, helping the club get all the way to the Super Bowl before falling short to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Talib announced his retirement little more than a year later. 

Since then, he's been making a name for himself in sports media. Specifically, in broadcasting. After getting his commentating start with FOX Sports in 2020, Talib was tapped to call a few regular-season games alongside Gus Johnson last season and the reviews were stellar but not without some critics. 

Amazon, and the broadcast bigwigs responsible for Thursday Night Football, have taken notice of Talib's refreshing style as a commentator. According to Ian Rapoport, Talib will join the TNF broadcast team for its pre-game, halftime, and post-game coverage. 

Now a done deal: Former All-Pro CB Aqib Talib, who has impressed in the booth recently, will join the Amazon desk for Thursday Night Football, source said. He’ll be involved in pre-game, halftime and postgame. https://t.co/5Xen7zdp9d

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 28, 2022

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It's another massive step in the right direction for Talib and his broadcasting career. He started his post-playing career as a podcaster and has steadily climbed the NFL media ladder because, just like his play, his commentating style is so unique, so refreshing that it adds an additional layer of drama for the viewer. 

Fans have become accustomed to the rote styles of NFL play-by-play and color commentators. Talib's approach, perhaps similar to one of his heroes on the field, Deion Sanders, shatters that mold with compelling insight that doesn't sound like the same ol', same 'ol. 

"He sounds amazing because he's not what you're used to," NFL Network anchor Andrew Siciliano said about Talib last fall, "and he's a fresh perspective, a fresh voice."

How exactly Talib's fingerprints will be on the TNF broadcasts this coming season remains to be seen but it doesn't sound like he'll be doing color commentary. Again, it's the pre and post-game coverage mostly. 

That's a shame because despite his chain-snatching, eyeball-poking ways (at times) as a player, Talib was renowned as one of the smartest guys of his era. The knowledge he gleaned through hours and hours of preparation set him apart. Few defenders watched as much film as he did. 

It was a big reason Talib was able to be so prolific on the grid-iron. Only three players in NFL history returned more interceptions to the house than Talib's 10 and his film-room dedication was a big reason for that. Six of those pick-sixes came as a Bronco and despite playing just four years with the club, he leads the franchise all-time in that statistical area. 

"He was somebody that we had always heard was a fun talk," FOX Sports executive Brad Zager said back in September. "When you had conversations with him, you really got it that his football IQ was off the charts and he's a guy that gave it to everybody real. When he was playing for the Rams, he actually came in and met with myself and Bill Richards, who oversees our 'FOX NFL Sunday' studio show. The two of us realized what everybody told us was the truth, which is he's somebody that you just enjoy sitting around a table and talking football with. He knows what he's talking about."

Talib is parlaying that football wisdom and his dynamic personality into a burgeoning career in NFL broadcasting. Broncos fans can look forward to his insights as the team will host Matt Ryan and the Indianapolis Colts in Week 5 on Thursday Night Football. 

We'll see what Talib has to say about Russell Wilson and company come October 6. I'm here for new commentating blood breaking into NFL broadcasting, like Talib and Pat McAfee. 

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Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.

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