While ESPN will have center stage with Emcee Berman and the Hall of Fame ceremony later today, NBC is reminding everyone it can annoy the football viewing world on the same level as the WorldWide Leader.

As you know, the “Big Show” is back some 11+ years after it grew stale, but Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann are convinced they can recreate the magic. In an interview with the Desert News, they discussed their history and the future:

And maybe the rest of the “Football Night in America” team — Bob Costas, Cris Collinsworth, Jerome Bettis and Tiki Barber — ought to be a little worried that Patrick and Olbermann will go back to their old ways. “We basically tried to get away with whatever we could because we didn’t think, at 11:30 at night, our bosses were even watching,” Patrick said.

“But that one day they would be watching, and we would both be finished forever,” Olbermann said. “So let’s get as much past the censors as we possibly can. That was the key.”

“And we will try to do that to Costas as well,” Patrick said, with his partner instantly voicing agreement. 

Annoy Bob Costas? That could be mildly entertaining. On a definite positive note, NBC will be streaming its games online this fall:

NBC is making its Sunday night NFL games available via online streaming at NBC.com and NFL.com. Added features online include: alternative camera angles, picture-in-picture to watch other streams and access to on-demand highlights. NBC referred to the online version of the games as “a one-year experiment.” NBC’s first Sunday Night Football Extra begins on a Thursday, with the league opener Sept.4 between the Redskins and New York Giants.

A one year experiment: just like the Big Show on NBC.