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Mountaineering made it to primetime in CBS’s latest reality competition series creation, The Summit. The series, the inaugural season of which premiered in the fall of 2024, featured 16 contestants who were challenged to climb a mountain in the Southern Alps in the space of two weeks, with obstacles (including twists brought in by the “Mountain’s Keeper”) and checkpoints to complete along the way. It was hosted by New Zealand-based star Manu Bennett and featured a total cash prize of $250,000.
The series is a Western version of the Australian show of the same name, which debuted in 2023 and ran for two seasons.
So will The Summit return for a second season this fall on CBS? Here’s a look at what to know about The Summit Season 2.
Is The Summit renewed for Season 2?
No. CBS canceled the series in April 2025 after just one season. It was given the kibosh alongside the network’s new original comedy series Poppa’s House.
Why was The Summit canceled?
Despite airing with the almost-evergreen reality competition series Survivor, The Summit failed to garner anywhere near the same audience. It averaged 2.6 million viewers in the first season.
Plus, reviews for the series’ first (and, ultimately, last) season were not positive. Vulture‘s Roxana Hadadi criticized the inclusion of everyday people instead of experienced climbers in the cast; “The Summit is guilty of the exact flattening of a perilous experience Krakauer warned against in Into Thin Air, a first-person account of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster that left numerous climbers dead and others stranded on the mountain in the middle of a devastating storm.” And USA Today‘s Kelly Lawler wrote that Bennett’s hosting was “woodenly” executed and called it “a cheap Survivor knockoff on a mountain.”
Who won The Summit Season 1?
Three of the 16 contestants were able to complete the climb without withdrawing, getting eliminated, or being medically evacuated: salesman Nick Morgan of Madisonville, Louisiana, Air Force Sergeant Ladeania “Punkin” Jackson of Columbus, Mississippi, and Therron Pittman, a waiter from Los Angeles, California. Each of the contestants earned the $250,000 they carried up for their completion of the challenge, and the $250,000 that was removed from the game — due to other players’ forfeit or evacuations — was voted by the eliminated players to be awarded to Nick, who ended up with $500,000 in total winnings.
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Bears have major concern heading into Steelers Week 12 showdown
The NFC North-leading Chicago Bears have a potential problem heading into Week 12 against the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4). At Wednesday's practice, the Bears (7-3) were without their top three linebackers, Tremaine Edmunds (groin), T.J. Edwards (hand/hamstring) and Noah Sewell (elbow), making their health something to monitor before Sunday's game between division leaders. Linebacker injuries an area of concern for Chicago Bears in Week 12 versus Pittsburgh Steelers Chicago's depth at linebacker will be tested if the trio can't play. D'Marco Jackson, Amen Ogbongbemiga and rookie fourth-rounder Ruben Hyppolite II are the only healthy linebackers on the active roster. They've combined to play 50 defensive snaps this season. Nine-year veteran Jalen Reeves-Maybin and Carl Jones Jr., a 2024 undrafted free agent, could be in line to move up from the practice squad. Edwards has missed Chicago's past two games after undergoing hand surgery, but the team declined to put him on injured reserve, avoiding a mandatory four-game absence. Sewell, who previously missed Week 7 with a concussion, has started in Edwards' place and led the team in tackles against the Minnesota Vikings (4-6) in Week 11. Edmunds has made 34 consecutive starts dating back to Nov. 19, 2023 and is having an All-Pro-caliber season, leading the team with 89 tackles while adding four interceptions, a sack and nine passes defended. The Steelers have their own injury concerns with quarterback Aaron Rodgers (wrist) uncertain to play on Sunday, though it remains a possibility after he was determined not to need surgery. "This might go right up until Friday or Saturday," ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano wrote about a potential timeline for a decision on Rodgers' availability. The Bears have been tormented by Rodgers throughout his 18-year career. The longtime Packers quarterback (2005-22) is 11-3 all-time at Soldier Field, including 10-1 in his last 11 starts. He's won four in a row dating back to 2019. If Rodgers plays, Chicago could have a much more difficult time stopping the Steelers offense considering the state of its linebackers. The Bears may need a magical elixir to get back to full health in time for the pivotal showdown. With only a one-game lead in the NFC North, every game counts for Chicago. But it could be severely undermanned if its top three linebackers are forced to watch from the sideline.
Aaron Rodgers explains his criteria for playing Sunday vs. Bears
Aaron Rodgers has always been a tough quarterback. He has dealt with several injuries throughout the course of his career, but he's always done everything he could to see the field. That's no different now that he's with the Pittsburgh Steelers and dealing with a fracture in his left (non-throwing) wrist. Rodgers injured himself against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, but he's already talking about trying to get back for Pittsburgh's Week 12 contest against the Chicago Bears. In fact, he revealed on Wednesday that he will try things out at practice before this week is over. "It feels better than it did Sunday, that's for sure," Rodgers said Wednesday afternoon, according to Brooke Pryor of ESPN. "... Was thankful to get today to work with [head athletic trainer Gabe Amponsah] and just focus on rehab for today. Trying to get back on the field tomorrow and see what I can do." Aaron Rodgers going to test out his wrist injury on Thursday Rodgers wants to be able to play against the Bears, a team he has owned throughout the years, but he's also saying that he'll be cautious. Remember, he is just weeks away from turning 42. A fractured wrist would be tough to play with at 24. As anyone who has ever gotten older would attest, things tend to hurt even more as you age. Throw in the fact that Rodgers is playing perhaps the most physical sport on Earth, and it makes sense that he does have a very specific standard that he must meet before he decides if he can play — and it has nothing to do with pain. "It's a safety thing," Rodgers said. Rodgers has played in 29 regular-season games against the Bears in his NFL career. Including two playoff wins, he boasts a 26-5 record against them. Since he last squared off with Chicago as the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers in 2022, he had won nine games in a row against the Bears. If he feels he can keep himself safe on Sunday, you can bet he's going to try to play.
The Big Five: Most dangerous teams currently outside the playoff picture
With just a week until Thanksgiving, the NFL playoff picture is beginning to take shape. But seven weeks remain in the regular season, giving teams on the outside looking in time to turn things around. Below, we rank the five most dangerous teams currently not in the playoff field. 5. Houston Texans (5-5, eight in AFC) Remaining opponents stats | Record: 40-31 (.563) • Currently in playoff field: 4 • Above .500: 4 With a defense as good as Houston's, it can't be taken lightly despite a brutal remaining schedule. Over the Texans' final seven games, they only play two teams currently with a losing record — the Arizona Cardinals (3-7) and Las Vegas Raiders (2-8). With C.J. Stroud (concussion) out for Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills (7-3), the team's hopes of remaining in contention will be even tougher. But Houston has won its past two games with Davis Mills at quarterback, thanks in large part to a defense allowing 221 yards per game. The Texans have the league's longest active streak of holding opponents under 200 passing yards (seven games), per Stathead research. In addition to the Bills, the Texans play the Indianapolis Colts (8-2) twice, Kansas City Chiefs (5-5) and Los Angeles Chargers (7-4), teams that can put up points. Houston, which is No. 21 in scoring offense (22 points per game), likely won't be able to keep pace in shootouts — even when Stroud returns — so it must lean on the defense to complete the long trek from 0-3 to the playoffs. 4. Dallas Cowboys (4-5-1, 10th in NFC) Remaining opponents stats | Record: 35-38 (.479) • Currently in playoff field: 2 • Above .500: 3 While we can't glean much from Dallas' convincing Monday night win over the directionless Raiders, it was still telling that the defense, a sore spot all season, kept an inept Las Vegas attack from having a season-best performance. Among the five teams listed here, the Cowboys have the easiest remaining strength of schedule, with more games against teams with losing records (three) than those in the playoff field (two). Their next three games — against the Philadelphia Eagles (8-2), Chiefs and Detroit Lions (6-4) — will inform how heavily Dallas factors into the playoff race through December. But for a team that seemingly had no hope following a Week 9 loss to the Cardinals, Dallas could be feistier down the stretch than most predicted. 3. Detroit Lions (6-4, eighth in NFC) Remaining opponents stats | Record: 37-32-2 (.521) • Currently in playoff field: 4 • Above .500: 4 Sunday's game against the New York Giants (2-9) is almost a must-win considering what lies ahead for Detroit. Over its final five games, it plays the Green Bay Packers (6-3-1), Los Angeles Rams (8-2), Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4) and Chicago Bears (7-3) plus the division-rival Minnesota Vikings (4-6). The Lions, who rank in the top five in total offense and defense, are more than capable of holding their own against stiff competition, although injures (particularly to the offensive line) have made them more vulnerable than the past two seasons, when they reached the NFC Championship Game (2023) and claimed the conference's No. 1 seed (2024). 2. Kansas City Chiefs (5-5, ninth in AFC) Remaining opponents stats | Record: 36-35-1 (.500) • Currently in playoff field: 3 • Above .500: 3 ESPN's Bill Barnwell recently laid out a convincing argument why this year's Chiefs squad isn't much different from last year's team that went 15-2. Other than a staggering regression in one-score games and special teams lapses, Kansas City is good enough to go on a run and crash the playoffs. The Chiefs' toughest remaining games (Colts, Chargers, Broncos) are at home. They also have a head-to-head with the Texans at Arrowhead. It's far too early to write Kansas City's obituary. The AFC West might be out of play, yet NFL Next Gen Stats still gives the Chiefs a 52 percent chance of making the playoffs. However, NFL.com's Ali Bhanpuri noted in a recently column that Kansas City's odds will drop to less than 33 percent with a loss this Sunday to Indianapolis. 1. Baltimore Ravens (5-5, 10th in AFC) Remaining opponents stats | Record: 35-35-1 (.493) • Currently in playoff field: 3 • Above .500: 4 The Ravens are just one game out of first in the AFC North and have the New York Jets (2-8) and Cincinnati Bengals (3-7) on the schedule before the first of two games with the division-leading Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4). By the end of the first weekend in December, Baltimore, which has won four in a row following a Week 7 bye, could easily be in pole position for a third straight AFC North title.
Scout shares take on why Vikings' J.J. McCarthy has struggled with accuracy this season
Second-year Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy has mostly played like a work in progress when healthy and on the field this fall. For a piece published on Wednesday, ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano pointed out that McCarthy is "obviously missing too many throws" at this stage of his development. Graziano spoke with an unnamed "scout with another team" to learn more about McCarthy's struggles. Are Vikings panicking about J.J. McCarthy? "McCarthy's throwing at only one speed -- all fastballs -- and attributed that to trying to be the hero in a situation where he knows his team is counting on him to help it win," Graziano said about his chat with the scout. "The general sense I get from inside the Vikings' building and out is that he just needs time and reps." The Vikings made McCarthy a first-round draft pick in the spring of 2024, but he then spent his entire rookie season recovering from a full meniscus repair. More recently, what became a lingering ankle injury limited McCarthy to just five starts over Minnesota's first 10 games of the ongoing campaign. According to Pro Football Reference, McCarthy began Wednesday ranked last in the league among qualified players with a 52.9 percent completion percentage, a 26.6 adjusted QBR and a 61.7 passer rating for the season. Nevertheless, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said in Wednesday's article that the Vikings really have "no choice" but to stick with McCarthy over undrafted free agent Max Brosmer. Veteran Carson Wentz previously started when McCarthy was sidelined with the ankle issue, but Wentz has since had season-ending shoulder surgery. What Vikings like about J.J. McCarthy amid struggles "The accuracy is a concern," Fowler added about McCarthy. "There's no hiding from that. Balls are sailing, and that affects the entire offense. McCarthy needs to hit the layups. The Vikings will be working to help him find more consistency as a thrower. From a developmental standpoint, the team still believes in his work ethic and skill set." For what it's worth, McCarthy tossed a go-ahead touchdown pass versus the Chicago Bears with under a minute to play in this past Sunday's matchup between the clubs. He then could only watch as Chicago's Cairo Santos kicked a walk-off game-winning field goal. 4-6 Minnesota next plays at the rival Green Bay Packers (6-3-1) this coming Sunday. As of Wednesday morning, ESPN BET had the Vikings as 6.5-point underdogs for that game.
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