Carrie Underwood is back for her 14th straight year as the face of NBC’s Sunday Night Football, but her latest return came with a twist that rubbed plenty of NFL fans the wrong way.
Before the New York Giants met the Dallas Cowboys, Underwood introduced a new version of “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night,” and NBC moved away from the familiar sound fans had grown used to. The updated anthem leaned harder into a rock feel, a sharp turn from the longtime version that was originally inspired by Joan Jett’s “I Hate Myself for Loving You.” Underwood said she loved the change, describing it as part of her “ongoing rock star fever dream” and praising the crew behind it.
The reaction from viewers at home was a lot less enthusiastic.
Social media lit up after the debut, with fans blasting the new theme and questioning why NBC would mess with something that had already worked. One viewer wrote, “Is the worst version of the SNF theme.
Seriously, why would you replace what you had the last? This version just seems like empty and shallow.
Last year had energy and got you pumped up for the game. This is trash,”
Another fan took aim at Underwood’s vocals, posting, “I’ve often wondered what the shriek of a banshee would sound like if it were real, then I heard Carrie Underwood sing the Sunday Night Football song, and it was probably just like that,”
A third viewer complained about the mix, saying, “I’m glad Carrie Underwood gets paid a ton of money to sing the Sunday Night Football theme song because you couldn’t understand or hear one note she sang.”
The new music played right before the Giants’ 28-20 win over the Cowboys at MetLife Stadium.
There was also a moment of real emotion before kickoff. A five-member NYPD-FDNY group performed the national anthem a cappella as the Giants honored the victims of 9/11, and the crowd responded warmly.
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