Cris Collinsworth sounds sick while calling Bucs-Cowboys game

Jan 1, 2017; Detroit, MI, USA; NBC Sports broadcaster Cris Collinsworth before the game between the Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

Cris Collinsworth was clearly not feeling like his usual self during Sunday night’s game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys.

Collinsworth worked in his usual color analyst role for “Sunday Night Football” alongside new partner Mike Tirico. Viewers immediately noticed that he sounded sick, as his voice was raspy and he did not seem as enthusiastic as he usually is. Whatever was bothering Collinsworth was so obvious that Tirico addressed it early in the first quarter.

Cris Collinsworth playing hurt tonight https://t.co/rQHi39QiMZ

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Tirico attributed the way Collinsworth sounded to the duo calling two games in less than a week and traveling all over the country. They were in Los Angeles on Thursday night for the NFL season opener between the Rams and Buffalo Bills.

We don’t know if Collinsworth was battling some sort of illness or just had a hoarse voice, but he definitely was playing hurt, as Tirico said. The situation reminded us a lot of how Jeff Gundy sounded during the Eastern Conference Finals earlier this year.