When the Boomer and Carton morning show on WFAN launched on September 4th, 2007, there was some uncertainty if the show was going to be a success.
In fact, co-host Boomer Esiason wasn’t quite sure if it was going to be a long-term gig.
“Initially, I’d be lying if I said yes,” said the former NFL Most Valuable Player. “I really didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know if I was going to enjoy it as much as I do. I watched Imus all those years and I really felt like he enjoyed what he did. I never knew that I would get as hooked on it as I had become about six months into it.”
And there were others at WFAN who had their doubts about whether the new morning show was going to work because there was a feeling that it wasn’t going to be a good fit for Boomer.
“I think that’s probably why there were many around (WFAN) including Mike (Francesa) and Chris (Russo) that felt like I’d be done with this after about six months and that there would be no reason for me to do something like this,” said Esiason. “It took me a while to get acclimated but what also helped was working with the maniac Craig (Carton) who kept everyday a complete surprise. I never knew what was coming out of his bag of tricks as we got started.”
To say it worked would be an understatement.
Almost 15 years later, Esiason is still holding down mornings at WFAN. He now co-hosts Boomer and Gio alongside Gregg Giannotti, which is also simulcast on television on the CBS Sports Network.
Esiason’s goal was to bring an athlete’s credibility to the show, but he realized early on that a morning talk show, even on an all-sports radio station, had to sound different than any other show. It wasn’t just about Joe from Saddle River calling in to talk about the Jets. The show had to be a mix of what was going on in the sports world along with fun and entertainment.
And in Craig Carton, Boomer had with him a co-host that introduced him to the world of morning radio.
“Once I realized what Craig was doing, I then kind of had to rethink the way I was going about things and not be taking myself or the athlete all that seriously,” said Esiason.
“I felt like I was the straight guy and Craig was the loose cannon but in a funny way. The longer we worked together, the easier it was for us to become intertwined with improvisation. If there was a dead day with not much sports to talk about, that meant we had other avenues to go down and some of those were uncomfortable for me to go down.”
For Esiason, the most uncomfortable moment for him had to be on September 6th, 2017 when Carton was arrested by the FBI on charges of securities and wire fraud as a result of a Ponzi scheme. Boomer broke the news to his audience that morning and Carton subsequently stepped down from WFAN creating a vacancy in the chair next to him.
It didn’t take long for Esiason to realize who his new co-host might be. On the day that Carton was arrested, long-time WFAN employee Vicky Biello told Boomer it would be Gregg Giannotti, who was already working down the hall hosting the morning show on CBS Sports Radio.
“She said Gio was going to be my next partner,” said Esiason. “She knew because she had seen Gio around here for a long time. I knew Gio. I had taken him to Monday Night games and different things. It was just a matter of whether or not he would ever get comfortable doing it the way I got used to doing it. It took him a few months to really get comfortable and once he did, I felt like we had the same kind of magic that I had with Craig.”
WFAN announced Giannotti as Boomer’s new partner on November 15th, 2017 and the Boomer and Gio morning show debuted on January 2nd, 2018.
The show remains a smash hit.
“I’m not surprised at all,” said Esiason. “I would have never let the show get lost or lose. I was too far into it. We had to find somebody who had the nuts and bolts of radio but also could be extremely funny and knowledgeable about where we’re from because it’s still local radio even though it’s on a national television network.”
In addition to WFAN, Boomer remains busy with his other broadcasting gigs including The NFL Today on CBS and his syndicated Gametime with Boomer Esiason program. His itch to get into broadcasting started as a huge sports fan growing up on Long Island and continued during his college days at the University of Maryland.
Drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2nd round of the 1984 NFL Draft, Boomer experienced his first taste of broadcasting while he was still playing. Esiason served as an analyst for World League of American Football Monday night telecasts on the USA Network during the 1990 and 1991 season.
It was easy to see that Esiason would have a future in broadcasting and that the best was yet to come…or so he thought.
After his playing career was over, Esiason signed a four-year deal in 1998 to join Al Michaels in the booth for ABC’s Monday Night Football. It’s been well documented that Esiason and Michaels didn’t have the greatest relationship and Esiason left the booth after just two seasons.
Boomer wondered if broadcasting was still going to be part of his life.
“You have to remember…I’m surrounded by all sorts of allies and guys that I got along with immensely,” said Esiason. “I had this notion of how great broadcasting can be. What I didn’t realize was how insecure this industry can be. I go to ABC and unfortunately it doesn’t go well with me and Al Michaels and I have to re-evaluate what I thought broadcasting was.”
Boomer was quickly hired by Westwood One to do the national NFL radio broadcasts, which put him back in a booth for Monday Night Football, playoff games and a record run of 19 straight national radio broadcasts of the Super Bowl.
Boomer was feeling better about broadcasting.
“Thankfully, I got to work with Howard David, Marv Albert and Kevin Harlan in the radio booth,” said Esiason. “All three of those guys, along with the occasional Dave Sims and a few other play-by-players, made broadcasting fun again.”
Esiason joined The NFL Today studio show on CBS in 2002. Between that, the national radio broadcasts and his WFAN morning show, Boomer was juggling three huge jobs from 2007 until he stepped away from the Westwood One broadcasts in 2018.
It was time for Boomer to cut his schedule a bit.
“Doing all of that was exhausting,” added Esiason. “Finally, I came to the realization that I couldn’t do it anymore and try to remain a normal human being.”
There was never a question of the passion that Boomer had for the game of football during his playing career or the passion that he currently has for his broadcasting jobs. There is however one thing that has kept him more focused and determined over the last 25 years than anything else; the work he does to raise money for the fight against Cystic Fibrosis.
For him, it’s personal.
In 1993, Esiason was traded by the Bengals to his hometown New York Jets. It was during training camp that summer when Esiason was told that his two-year-old son Gunnar had difficulty breathing and was taken to a hospital where he was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. Esiason launched the Boomer Esiason Foundation to raise money and awareness for the fight against CF. All of his broadcasting duties over the years supported him giving him a platform to get the word out.
“I had to try and save my son’s life,” said Esiason. “I think Gunnar, at the age of 31 and having his own child and now starting a whole new life because of new drug development due to the money we’ve raised along with the National Cystic Fibrosis Foundation was kind of my calling,” said Esiason.
“I had so much on my plate that every time I tried to do something, I always had in mind if it was another platform that I can promote what I was doing in real life for real people. It’s one of the things that has kept me going. To be able to say that I’ve raised over $170 million in the fight against CF over the last 25 years, is nothing short of a miracle but it’s due in large part to the companies I’ve worked for.”
Between the foundation, WFAN, The NFL Today and his other broadcasting duties, Boomer still has a pretty full plate these days. In 2020, he made an unexpected trip back to a broadcast booth during the pandemic when Tony Romo came down with COVID-19 and CBS asked him to fly to Los Angeles and work with Jim Nantz on a Cardinals/Rams telecast.
And that begs the question…would Esiason ever consider even as much as a part-time return to broadcasting NFL games?
“I’ve always told (Westwood One Executive Vice-President) Howard Deneroff if he needed me in New York for a Monday Night, I’d be more than happy to show up and do it,” said Esiason. “I think that ship has probably sailed. Certainly, CBS knows that they have me. I could do it in my sleep, but if I go and try and do that again, I’ll probably be asleep for a long time and never get up.”
Boomer Esiason continues to get up every morning to co-host one of the most popular shows on New York radio. With everything else that he’s busy with, he still manages to carve out time to spend with his family and watch his beloved New York Rangers and New York Mets. He lived the good life as an NFL quarterback and has certainly enjoyed a stellar broadcast career to go along with his philanthropic work.
Now as far as a return to the broadcast booth, I could also use an experienced analyst for Long Island high school football telecasts!
Just kidding Boomer…but seriously let me know!
Peter Schwartz writes weekly sports radio features for Barrett Media. He has been involved in New York sports media for over three decades, and has worked for notable brands such as WFAN, CBS Sports Radio, WCBS 880, ESPN New York, and FOX News Radio. Peter has also served as play by play announcer for the New Yok Riptide, New York Dragons, New York Hitmen, Varsity Media and the Long Island Sports Network. You can find him on Twitter @SchwartzSports or email him at DragonsRadio@aol.com.
