joe_buckSumming up Joe Buck’s second offering on HBO in a word: Dull.

If not for for the occasional ramble or slurring of speech from 66-year-old Joe Namath, the quarterback segment with Marino and Elway would have been a complete bust. The questions were safe and stale.

Mark Cuban and Jerry Jones, the controversial owners in Dallas, were anything but. Cuban, who seems like the kind of guy that would flip out if a waiter brought him water with ice cubes, was cautious. Jerry Jones, appearing weary two nights after the opening of his new stadium, mostly railed against revenue sharing. These two were probably the show’s highlight.

The show wrapped with a portly Curt Schilling, wearing stubble, a perma-grin and what looked like penny loafers, talking politics. The man likes to name-drop. John McCain, Ann Coulter – these people are his friends. Schilling’s Big Reveal was that he won’t run for Senate. Because it has some news value, it is the only reason the show will be mentioned in the media today. There was some steroids talk. Roger Clemens was mentioned. Yawn.

What is the point in courting controversial sports figures like Namath, Cuban, Jones and Schilling, and then never steering them in the direction of anything remotely controversial? Nobody’s asking Buck to be combative, but he’s had weeks – if not months – to prepare for these interviews. We usually lament the rehearsed “anecdotes” that guests come armed with to Letterman or Conan … we longed for them tonight. Maybe shorter segments is the answer?

If not for Artie Lange’s explosion in the show’s debut, nobody would have been talking about Joe Buck’s foray into late night TV; there will be little – if any – chatter today about last night’s episode. Right now, Buck’s show feels like a pitcher being given a third chance, with failure resulting in a trip back to the minors. And frankly, the third and fourth episodes may not matter much at all – it just doesn’t seem like Buck has what it takes to make it as a TV host.

If Buck is funny and witty and capable of one-liners, where are they during the show?