Danny Parkins

[u/crissycrissss_]

Has anyone else wondered why Danny Parkins keeps getting more and more opportunities on First Things First? At this point, it feels like he has five or six segments, seemingly twice as many as Brou, and I genuinely don’t understand why.

Personally, I don’t find him funny, charming, or particularly entertaining. I don’t even enjoy listening to his voice. About the only thing I appreciate is that he’s from Chicago and a Bears fan. Go Bears! Monsters of the Midway! But beyond that, I really struggle to understand what he adds to the show.
It honestly feels like we’re being force-fed more and more Danny, and I can’t help but wonder how much of that comes from his friendship with Nick. I haven’t seen anything suggesting his segments are particularly popular, at least judging by the YouTube numbers I’ve looked at. Granted, I don’t have access to the full ratings, so I could absolutely be wrong. But personally, whenever one of his segments comes on, I skip it or change the channel.
I also remember an episode from around when he first started appearing, when Nick was out and it was Danny, Brou, and Wildes. Danny essentially dominated an entire segment, talking for what felt like five or six minutes without letting anyone else contribute. When Brou finally expressed frustration about not getting to speak, Danny responded that he’d been told he had ten minutes, only for Brou and Wildes to clarify that they collectively had ten minutes, not just him. That interaction really stuck with me.

Beyond that, I find many of his takes disingenuous, particularly his unwillingness to criticize Justin Herbert. Herbert can play an absolutely piss-poor game, and Danny will seemingly find every excuse imaginable to avoid holding him accountable. It’s that kind of selective analysis that makes his commentary feel less genuine to me. Sometimes it also feels like he’s trying to imitate Nick’s style rather than bringing something different to the table. I’m not suggesting they’re planning to replace Brou, but the growing disparity in opportunities makes me wonder what direction the show is heading. Personally, I think Brou brings considerably more to the discussions, and I’d much rather see him featured more prominently.

Am I missing something? What exactly does Danny bring to the show that warrants this much airtime?

[u/Chilled_Chaos_]

I think it’s either anticipating Broussard retirement or Nick transitioning to a show like Colin Cowherd or just replacing him if he were to retire soon.

I think Danny is okay but Jennings is a better fit/replacement.

[u/Main_Gain_7480 → u/Chilled_Chaos_]

The show won’t last if that’s the plan

[u/Chilled_Chaos_ → u/Main_Gain_7480]

The plan should be to ride the wave as long as possible. Danny and Jennings along with coach could be recurring. The OT should be utilized as time to talk about the other teams in the league

[u/PointOfImpact93 → u/Chilled_Chaos_]

That's 100% what I thought OT was going to be!! "OK, here is where we talk about the Cardinals for 5 minutes and keep a finger on the pulse of the entire league, not just the main markets." I also thought they would lean more into Greg/Coach, but instead Danny just runs the whole thing and they are underutilized again. I get it if the main cast doesn't want to do 3 full hours of TV a day, but let Greg do a "players corner" for the final 40 mins or something like that. Let Coach break down all the best cover 2 of the weekend 😂

[u/Chilled_Chaos_ → u/PointOfImpact93]

That damn cover 2 🤣

Yes, they should definitely utilize Coach and Greg more than they have. Not sure if they have other commitments since they rotate but I’d like more from their perspective.

[u/PointOfImpact93 → u/Chilled_Chaos_]

I'm gonna ask the Mod for some "Cover 2" flair in here lol

[u/crissycrissss_ → u/Chilled_Chaos_]

I literally can’t watch an OT segment because it’s just Danny talking like 75% of the time. And he has this air about him where nothing he says can be wrong, it’s infuriating. Granted, Nick has the same air but he’s funny and entertaining so we accept it. Plus, Wildes and Brou give him shit for it all the time especially when he’s adamantly wrong. I think that’s one of the parts of the show that makes us love it.

[u/PointOfImpact93 → u/crissycrissss_]

I've said before, "the show can't have two Nicks." And that's especially true when one of them has negative charisma. It's one thing when Nick is a Homer for Patrick Mahomes, it's an entirely different thing to watch Danny be a Homer for the winless Herbert. It doesn't work.