Ten years ago, Kevin Burkhardt had all but given up on his dream job in broadcasting and started a career as a car salesman by blindly picking out an ad in Sunday’s classifieds. Now, he will be calling one of the more coveted games of the NFL season: Saturday’s Seahawks-Saints Divisional Round playoff tilt from Seattle.
“The whole year has been surreal for me,” Burkhardt said. “I know it’s cliché, but it is what I always dreamed of when I was calling Tecmo Bowl games on Nintendo or watching [Pat] Summerall and [John] Madden when I was growing up. Now, I am just so jacked, it’s not even funny. I’ve been there [Seattle] and that place is real and it’s insane. It’s a factor. I am lucky to be in this spot and people who believe in me. And having a great crew makes it so much easier.”
Burkhardt has slowly built up his reputation in the industry through his work on Mets telecasts on SNY, where he has established himself as one of the top “sideline” reporters. But the move to calling NFL games on Fox was a big jump, and his debut season will end with a playoff game. Burkhardt, with analyst John Lynch and sideline reporter Erin Andrews, leads the third team in as many years to call Fox’s second divisional playoff game with Joe Buck and Troy Ailkman calling the most coveted NFC game (Panthers-49ers this year).
Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston and Tony Siragusa called the game two years ago. Last year, it was Thom Brennaman and Brian Billick. A Fox spokesman said they don’t have a set broadcasting team to do the second playoff game, and it’s instead decided as each season develops.
“It’s pretty insane,” said Burkhardt, who called Cowboys games on the Compass Media Networks prior to this season.
“I think when I first came into it the biggest thing in the thought process was you’re not doing radio anymore. I think I did a pretty good job with that. I still have to learn how to economize words sometimes, but I think I’ve watched enough football on TV where I know what the big moments are and I am going to let that happen without destroying it. I know when you watch football on TV it bugs you when guys talk too much, and I was very cognizant of that.”
Back when he was a car salesman, Burkhardt made his way back into broadcasting by getting a part-time gig at WFAN and then becoming the station’s Jets reporter. Now , it’s possible he may be ready to graduate from his role at SNY. According to Newsday, Burkhardt is under contract with the Mets’ network for another year and though Fox is potentially interested in expanding his role, the network would have to seek SNY’s permission.
“I think the reality is anytime someone comes to you with something different, you have to listen,” Burkhardt, a New Jersey native, said when asked about the possibility of a full-time MLB play-by-play gig.
“When SNY hired me, I had no idea that would be on the table. When Fox came to me with this, I didn’t have any idea this was on the table. You have to listen to anything that life could give you. I can’t sit here and say I have a plan, just right now the way things are right now I am lucky and happy and I’ll see where 2014 takes me.”