Commentary: Miller’s Debut a Mixed Bag

I don’t understand why football fans are so offended by Dennis Miller’s presence on Monday Night Football. Miller isn’t there for the football fans. ABC knows those people would watch the game even if the network put a live mike in front of the guy scooping cheese at an upper-deck nacho stand. Miller’s job is to draw the non-fans. ABC hopes America will find Miller funnier than Raymond, more self-absorbed than Ally McBeal, and more cerebral than the History Channel. As for Miller’s first outing, it was a little rough. He sounded like he was giggling the whole time, and he stepped on his partners several times. Some may think Miller is as misplaced as a necktie at a truck race, but he’s an entertainer, and this is football, not brain surgery. The jury’s still out on Dennis Miller, and there’s plenty of room for improvement. And while he got off a few classic Miller lines, some of them were as forced as a Bill and Hillary kiss. But really folks, even if Miller becomes the best Monday Night Football analyst in years, that’s like being the best hockey player in Ecuador.