Getty Andrew Whitworth observes a Rams 2022 minicamp practice on June 7.
Looks like retired Los Angeles Rams Pro Bowler Andrew Whitworth is in the process of staying involved with the game of football by joining a new team.
The Amazon team, that is.
First reported by the New York Post’s Ryan Glasspiegel on Monday, June 27, the Rams‘ top blind side protector, who announced his retirement after winning his first-ever Super Bowl at age 40, is expected to join the newest broadcast team for the streaming network — which will hold the Thursday Night Football coverage.
What ‘Big Whit’s’ Role Will be
Again, the roster for the new Thursday Night Football network has begun its build.
Longtime play-by-play announcer Al Michaels will join veteran college football personality Kirk Herbstreit in the broadcast booth during games. As for the studio broadcast team, here’s what the lineup is looking like:
Charissa Thompson: Reported on June 13 by Andre Marchand of the Post, the Fox Sports personality is slated to be the host of the studio coverage. She’s the host of “Fox NFL Kickoff” that airs at 8 a.m. before “Fox NFL Sunday” and is anticipated to stay with Fox. Per Marchand, former NFL Network personality Kay Adams was in talks about hosting the Amazon studio coverage but according to his sources “the sides failed to come to an agreement.”
Richard Sherman: The longtime division rival to the Rams announced on June 14 that he’s joining the Amazon team. The 34-year-old Super Bowl champion and perennial Pro Bowler, however, told the NFL network’s Steve Wyche that he’s left the door open about a possible return to the NFL.
“No, I am still leaving that door open as long as I can.”
@RSherman_25 on if he is done playing.
Tony Gonzalez: The Hall of Fame tight end has become a rising personality in the NFL broadcast realm. Not only does Gonzalez appear with Thompson on the early morning Fox NFL coverage, but he’s a regular contributor alongside Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Michael Strahan and Curt Menefee on “Fox NFL Sunday.”
Ryan Fitzpatrick: Reported by Marchand on June 21, the veteran quarterback of 17 seasons is on board with Amazon.
“Amazon jumped out at me,” Fitzpatrick said to Marchand. “In terms of it is something that’s fresh and new. It just made a lot of sense of what I was trying to get into.”
As for Whitworth, his role with Amazon is yet to be determined. The Post reports that Whitworth isn’t set to take a studio spot with the aforementioned former players. But he’s now expected to join Amazon for the 2022 season. And he won’t be the only former Ram anticipated to join the network.
Fellow Ram Also Joining
Aqib Talib is another who is being expected to join the Amazon team.
The former Rams cornerback, who played in Super Bowl 53 with the franchise and spent his final two seasons in the league with L.A., is also anticipated to join the streaming service.
Talib has already dove into the media in his post NFL career. He launched the “Catchin’ Fades” podcast a year ago which included Rams All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey as one of his guests. He’s also in the broadcast booth with Andrew Siciliano and Mina Kimes during Ram preseason games. He also spent last season with Fox as a color commentator.