The Purge: Who's in, who's out on ESPN's NFL pregame shows

In a big loss for ESPN, Jackson announced his retirement after 29 years with the network. Always a smart, classy presence, Jackson's had a 29-year on-air partnership with Chris Berman. They made "NFL Primetime" a must-watch for football fans from 1987-2005.

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ESPN wanted to bring back the 65-year-old Jackson. But the ex-Denver Broncos linebacker turned them down, making him one of the few talents to turn down Bristol money. Boomer noted he and Jackson were on the air nearly as long as Johnny Carson's and Ed McMahon's 31 years on the "Tonight Show." ESPN president John Skipper said, "His partnership with Chris Berman has been a signature for us and a treasure for fans."

Come back, TJ. We miss you already.

Ditka is giving up his long-time analyst chair on "Sunday NFL Countdown" and "Monday Night Countdown." Iron Mike got in hot water with his bosses for calling Barack Obama the "worst" president in U.S. history. But ESPN gave the Super Bowl-winning coach with the 1985 Chicago Bears a two-year extension to serve as a "SportsCenter" contributor.

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Ditka told me he was tired of the weekly travel to Bristol, Conn. from his Chicago home. Now he'll contribute remotely to ESPN from his homes in Chicago and Florida. Yeah, the irascible Ditka is politically incorrect. But he communicated the blood and guts philosophy of the old-school NFL generation. Especially during his "Stop It!" segment. That made "Da Coach" an unpredictable and enjoyable TV watch.

The author of "Just Give Me the Damn Ball" moved almost immediately to ESPN after retiring from the NFL in 2007. Who better to discuss NFL divas than the ultimate diva himself?

I thought Johnson did a nice job over the last decade, particularly when it came to educating viewers about the increasingly vital role of WR's in the pass-happy NFL. But Johnson was swept out in the "Sunday NFL Countdown" purge this offseason. The 2002 Super Bowl winner's sartorial splendor didn't save him when the TV Turk knocked on his door and asked him to hand in his TV playbook.

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Nobody uttered a "C'mon Man!" quite like Cris Carter. But he'll have to look for employment at Fox, NBC, CBS or NFL Network after getting the heave-ho from ESPN.

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My spies tell me he's been talking to Jamie Horowitz's new management team at Fox Sports. But time is getting short for CC. The new 2016 NFL season kicks off Sep. 8, with the Super Bowl champion Broncos hosting the Panthers at Mile High Stadium. If I had to bet, I'd say he's headed for the league's own NFL Network.

Carter joined ESPN in 2008. He's also talked football on HBO's "Inside the NFL."

ESPN had high hopes for the two-time Super Bowl champion when he joined the network in 2013. Nobody was more able to fire up a locker room or deliver an up-tempo, inspirational speech like Lewis. But those skills never translated on the air.

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Lewis was too much of a windbag. He spoke a lot while saying very little. That's the exact opposite of what you need to do on TV. Like Emmitt Smith before him, I don't think Lewis will have much of a future broadcasting career after his crash and burn at ESPN.

Boomer has been the face and voice of ESPN since the 1980's. He's hosted "Sunday NFL Countdown" for 31 years. But 2016 will be his last season at the helm of "Sunday NFL Countdown" and "Monday Night Countdown," according to sources, as ESPN pushes him toward emeritus status and/or retirement.

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Berman will have to make his swan song without Jackson, his on-air partner of 30 years. He'll be hosting an all-new crew of "Countdown" analysts with last year's studio team of Jackson, Mike Ditka, Keyshawn Johnson and Cris Carter heading for the exits.

Berman's agent says Boomer is not ready to retire. But can you picture Berman working for another network? Me neither. If this is Berman's last ride, we'll leave you with what should be his signature theme song from the greatest highlight show ever: "NFL Primetime."

Who would have known? The surly, media-baiting former New England Patriots/Minnesota Viking star has turned into a loquacious TV star. Fox Sports' FS1 has been raiding ESPN for talent such as Jason Whitlock and Colin Cowherd. So it was payback time when John Skipper's ESPN recruited Moss from FS1, where he posted an impressive three-year run as an analyst on the "Fox NFL Kickoff" pregame show.

Moss made a strong first impression by declaring somebody should be fired for the Hall of Fame game being canceled recently for poor field conditions.

Known as a good quote during his NFL career, ESPN scooped up the smart, opinionated Woodson as soon as he decided to retire from the NFL after an 18-season career.

Will Woodson be worth the cost of jettisoning more seasoned TV talents such as Keyshawn Johnson and Cris Carter? We'll see. I wasn't impressed by his performance when the NFL had to unexpectedly cancel the Hall of Fame game due to poor field conditions. Woodson was over-rehearsed. He didn't seem comfortable tackling a late-breaking development. But ESPN wouldn't have hired him if he didn't have a lot of TV potential. We'll chalk that up to a rookie mistake.

Like Woodson, Hasselbeck walked straight off the field, and into ESPN, after an 18-year NFL career. He joins his brother Tim Hasslebeck, who's served as an NFL analyst at ESPN since 2008.

Also like Woodson, Hasselbeck's hire shows ESPN wants to add analysts with more recent on-field experience rather than greybeards such as Tom Jackson and Mike Ditka. His experience as an NFL QB in 2015 should come in handy as ESPN tries to analyze whether offense or defense will have the upper hand in the NFL this season.

The departures of Jackson, Lewis and Carter opened up more air time for Dilfer. Under his new contract, the former Super Bowl winning QB will now appear on "Sunday NFL Countdown" as well as "Monday Night Countdown." 

Dilfer said one of the reasons he re-signed with ESPN is the chance to work with Berman on the network's signature "Sunday NFL Countdown" pregame show. Once he finishes his Sunday workday in Bristol, Dilfer will then travel to the site of each week's "Monday Night Football" game as he did last season. Dilfer has improved over the years. I like his "Dilfer's Dimes" segment.

Young is so brainy he sometimes talks over the head of viewers. But the former Super Bowl winner is also capable of making distinct, original points that you don't hear elsewhere among the typical analyst cliches about "running downhill" and "out in space." He's one of ESPN's best in my book.

Kolber's star is rising among ESPN's NFL talkers. The anchor/reporter was named the full-time host of "Monday Night Countdown" for the 2015 season. She also hosts the weekday show, "NFL Insiders," and plays a key role in ESPN's Super Bowl and Draft coverage.

Kolber, who first joined ESPN in 1993, signed a multi-year contract extension last season along with Trey Wingo, host of the weekday "NFL Live." Kolber and Wingo are viewed as the two leading candidates to succeed Berman as host of "Sunday NFL Countdown" for the 2017 season. Here's Kolber leading a salute to her good friend, the late, great Stuart Scott.

The highly-regarded Schefter vies with Jay Glazer of Fox Sports and Peter King of Sports Illustrated/NBC Sports for the title of best NFL insider. Schefter plays a key role in both shows, breaking news and filling in the blanks for viewers on who's starting, who's hurt and who's suspended.

The big question is whether Schefter will be joined this season by longtime partner Chris Mortensen, who's suffering from Stage IV throat cancer. Mort is one of the best in the business. We hope he gets better and is back on the air this season.

Chris Mortensen selected as PFWA’S 2016 Dick McCann Award winner. Yes!https://t.co/LWL5k71lUf https://t.co/mThTjthQCP

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 22, 2016

Nix came on strong last season, hosting segments on "Sunday NFL Countdown." She had a standout TV moment when she declared Dallas Cowboys fans should abandon their team after owner Jerry Jones signed the controversial Greg Hardy, who had been convicted of assaulting his ex-girlfriend.

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"Jerry Jones has made his choice. Now let’s make ours. And if the bottom line is the language that Jerry Jones speaks, then let that dollar vote," Nix said about Hardy. Bravo.

Look for Nix to get more air time this season.