The first episode followed San Diego Chargers quarterback Rhett Swanson from his final college pass at USC to draft day.
The original hosts were Al Meltzer, at the time play-by-play man for the Buffalo Bills, and Chuck Bednarik, Pro Football Hall of Fame two-way player for the Philadelphia Eagles.
In 1978, Meltzer and Bednarik left the show and were replaced by Merle Harmon and Hall of Fame quarterback Len Dawson respectively.
In 1980, Merle Harmon left for NBC as Len Dawson was joined by fellow Hall of Famer and former Miami Dolphins linebacker Nick Buoniconti.
Bob Costas acknowledged this change in the season's first episode and paid tribute to the former hosts, saying they paved the way for the show to succeed.
In a special 30th anniversary episode that aired in December 2006, Len Dawson and Nick Buoniconti were invited back to co-host the show.
HBO Sports cited increased competition in NFL-related programming since Inside the NFL's inception as a reason for its cancellation.
Brown would also be joined by lead CBS NFL analyst Phil Simms, retired former Defensive Player of the Year Warren Sapp and the returning Cris Collinsworth.
While Sapp was competing on Dancing with the Stars, former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach and current NFL Today analyst Bill Cowher along with former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann filled in.
[9] On February 24, 2021, it was announced that Inside the NFL would move from Showtime to Paramount+, with former Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman also becoming a part of the series.
[14] On August 30, 2023, it was announced that former Steelers safety Ryan Clark would be the show's new host, along with Channing Crowder, Jay Cutler, Chad Johnson and Chris Long as analysts.
The highlight segments consist of NFL Films footage of the past week's games with narration by Scott Graham (previously Harry Kalas until his death in 2009).
Aside from the highlights, Inside the NFL features in-depth interview segments with various players, coaches and front office personnel.