Chris Collins

Anthony Cris Collinsworth Bio

Anthony Cris Collinsworth is an American former professional football player and acclaimed sports broadcaster who spent eight seasons as a wide receiver with the Cincinnati Bengals from 1981 to 1988. Standing at 6 feet 5 inches tall, Collinsworth was a dominant deep threat who made three consecutive Pro Bowl appearances and earned second-team All-Pro honors three times. Following his retirement from the NFL, he transitioned seamlessly into broadcasting, becoming one of the most recognized voices in sports television. He currently serves as the color commentator for NBC’s Sunday Night Football and maintains an extensive broadcasting portfolio across multiple networks. Collinsworth is also the majority owner of Pro Football Focus, a leading analytics company in professional football.

Early Life and Background

Collinsworth was born on January 27, 1959, in Dayton, Ohio, to Abraham Lincoln Collinsworth and Donetta Browning Collinsworth. His father, known as Abe or Lincoln, was an exceptional basketball player who scored prolifically in Kentucky high-school history and played for the Kentucky Wildcats during their 1958 national championship season. Both parents worked in education, with Donetta serving as a teacher and Abe rising from high-school teacher and coach to principal and eventually superintendent of schools for Brevard County.

The Collinsworth family relocated from Ohio to Melbourne, Florida, in 1963 when Cris was four years old. They settled in nearby Titusville in 1972, where young Collinsworth attended Astronaut High School while his father served as the school principal. During his junior year in 1976, Collinsworth captured the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 3A state championship in the 100-yard dash and earned recognition as a high-school All-American quarterback, establishing himself as a versatile athlete with exceptional speed.

Path to Professional Football

Collinsworth’s rare combination of height and speed attracted attention from college football programs throughout the South. He accepted an athletic scholarship from coach Doug Dickey to play for the University of Florida Gators in Gainesville. Though recruited as a run-first quarterback for the Gators’ option offense, Collinsworth made an immediate impact by throwing a 99-yard touchdown pass to Derrick Gaffney against Rice in his first collegiate attempt, a record that remains tied for the longest touchdown pass in NCAA history.

When Florida transitioned from its run-oriented offense to a pro-style attack in 1978, Collinsworth moved to wide receiver where his position coach was former Gator quarterback Steve Spurrier in his first coaching role. The position change proved transformative. Collinsworth earned first-team All-Southeastern Conference honors in each of his three seasons from 1978 to 1980, and in his senior year he was named both a first-team All-American and first-team Academic All-America. He served as captain of the 1980 Gators team that achieved the biggest single-year turnaround in NCAA Division I history at that time, improving from an 0-10-1 record to 8-4. Collinsworth was named MVP of the 1980 Tangerine Bowl and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1981.

Anthony Cris Collinsworth Career

Professional Career with Cincinnati Bengals (1981–1988)

Collinsworth was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round of the 1981 NFL Draft, chosen 37th overall. In his rookie season, he immediately became the Bengals’ leading receiver and set the franchise record for receptions by a rookie with 67 catches, the most by an NFL rookie wide receiver in 21 years. His exceptional size-speed combination created constant mismatches against smaller defensive backs, and he surpassed 1,000 receiving yards in four different seasons (1981, 1983, 1985, and 1986).

Collinsworth’s most memorable game came in Super Bowl XVI on January 24, 1982, where he recorded five receptions for 107 yards, leading all receivers in the game. However, the Bengals fell to the San Francisco 49ers 26-21, with Collinsworth suffering a costly second-quarter fumble that set up San Francisco’s decisive 92-yard touchdown drive. He played his final NFL game in Super Bowl XXIII in January 1989, catching three passes for 40 yards. Collinsworth completed his eight-season NFL career with 417 receptions for 6,698 yards and 36 touchdowns across 107 games.

Broadcasting Career

Following his retirement from professional football, Collinsworth began his broadcasting career as a sports radio talk show host on Cincinnati station WLW, eventually taking over the full-time hosting duties. In 1989, he transitioned to television as a reporter for HBO’s Inside the NFL. He joined NBC’s NFL broadcast team in 1990 and became part of the NBC pregame show in 1996.

When Fox acquired NFL broadcast rights in 1998, Collinsworth moved to Fox NFL Sunday, eventually becoming a color commentator for Fox’s lead game broadcasting crew alongside Joe Buck and Troy Aikman in 2002. He contributed to Fox’s Super Bowl XXXIX telecast in 2005 and also hosted the television series Guinness World Records Primetime during his tenure at Fox.

Collinsworth returned to NBC in 2006 as a studio analyst for Sunday night NFL coverage while continuing work on Inside the NFL and the NFL Network. In 2009, he assumed the prestigious color-commentator role on NBC’s Sunday Night Football, succeeding John Madden and pairing with Al Michaels. As of 2025, Collinsworth is in his seventeenth season on the high-profile Sunday Night Football broadcast, now paired with Mike Tirico. Beyond football, he provided Olympic commentary alongside Bob Costas during the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics and 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.

Collinsworth has earned 17 Sports Emmy Awards for his broadcasting work. He is also the majority owner of Pro Football Focus, the analytics company that has become influential in NFL analysis and player evaluation.

Broadcasting Style and Strengths

Collinsworth is known for his ability to break down complex football concepts for viewers of all knowledge levels while maintaining analytical depth. His experience as a former NFL player provides him unique insight into player technique, game strategy, and the mental aspects of professional football. One of his most recognizable broadcasting trademarks was the Collinsworth Slide, where he would slide his chair into frame after Al Michaels’ introduction to provide his pregame analysis. He has been noted for his particularly thorough analysis of quarterbacks and offensive schemes.

Notable Events and Milestones

Throughout his broadcasting career, Collinsworth has called numerous landmark NFL moments, including multiple Super Bowls and regular-season milestone games. His long tenure on Sunday Night Football has made him one of the most recognized voices in American sports broadcasting. In addition to his football work, Collinsworth appeared as a commentator at Wimbledon alongside tennis legends Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova in 1995, demonstrating his versatility as a sports broadcaster.

Anthony Cris Collinsworth Career Statistics

Collinsworth established himself as one of the most productive wide receivers of his era during his eight seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals. His combination of size and speed allowed him to dominate defensive backs throughout his career.

NFL Career Highlights

Over his eight NFL seasons, Collinsworth recorded 417 career receptions for 6,698 yards and 36 touchdowns. He averaged 16.1 yards per reception, demonstrating his deep-threat capabilities. Collinsworth surpassed 1,000 receiving yards in four separate seasons, including a standout 1983 campaign. In the postseason, he was particularly impactful, leading Super Bowl XVI in receiving yards and contributing key catches in Super Bowl XXIII in his final professional game. His career-high single-season reception totals came during his three consecutive Pro Bowl seasons from 1981 to 1983.

Anthony Cris Collinsworth Family

Family Background and Racing Lineage

Collinsworth comes from a distinguished athletic and educational family. His father, Abraham Lincoln Collinsworth, was a highly accomplished basketball player who remains one of the top scorers in Kentucky high-school history. Lincoln played for the legendary Kentucky Wildcats team known as the Fiddling Five that captured the 1958 national championship. Both of Collinsworth’s parents dedicated their careers to education, with his father eventually rising to become superintendent of schools for Brevard County, Florida.

Collinsworth’s younger brother, Greg Collinsworth, also pursued athletics. The family moved frequently during Cris’s childhood due to his father’s career in education administration, eventually settling in Titusville, Florida, where Abe served as principal of Astronaut High School.

Personal Life

Collinsworth married Holly Bankemper, an attorney, and they reside in Fort Thomas, Kentucky. The couple has four children together. Their son Austin Collinsworth played football at the University of Notre Dame. Another son, Jac Collinsworth, also attended Notre Dame and worked as a featured reporter for ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown before joining NBC, where he serves as the on-site host for Football Night in America and covers various major sporting events including Notre Dame football, NASCAR, the Indianapolis 500, and the Kentucky Derby. Collinsworth earned a juris doctor degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1991.

Collinsworth is active in public service, serving on the Board of Selectors of the Jefferson Awards for Public Service. In March 2011, he was among 83 people rescued from Jeff Ruby’s Waterfront restaurant in Covington, Kentucky, after the floating restaurant broke free from its moorings on the Ohio River. The restaurant eventually became lodged against the Brent Spence Bridge connecting Ohio and Kentucky.

2025 Season Broadcast Preview

As Anthony Cris Collinsworth enters his seventeenth season as the color commentator for NBC’s Sunday Night Football in 2025, he continues to be the leading voice of the NFL’s premier weekly broadcast. Working alongside play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico, Collinsworth provides analysis for the most-watched NFL game each week during the regular season plus select playoff matchups. His extensive experience calling high-profile games and his ability to connect with viewers of varying football knowledge keep him at the forefront of sports broadcasting.

Beyond his Sunday Night Football duties, Collinsworth maintains his role as majority owner of Pro Football Focus, the analytics company that has revolutionized how NFL teams evaluate players and game tape. His ownership stake keeps him connected to the analytical side of football operations while his broadcasting career allows him to share insights with millions of viewers weekly. As the NFL continues to grow its television audience and expand its digital presence, Collinsworth’s dual perspective as former player, team executive, and broadcaster provides unique value to NBC’s NFL coverage.