In all honesty I’ve never been a fan of the Thursday Night Football game. To me, as a former Fantasy Football player, it really made setting a lineup a tough chore. No time between the end of the Monday Night game to figure out if a guy scheduled for Thursday was actually hurt or not hurt.
I know, first world problems.
Never understand why the Fox telecasts have their pregame show emanating from New York and not the site of the game. In the case of last week, it makes a little sense because the Jets were playing, but they were at Baltimore not at home. I can’t factor in what it actually costs a network to send a show to the game, or if the host, Michael Strahan (who has more jobs than anyone I’ve ever met in my life) is available to travel with his demanding schedule. They did have a sponsored “Tailgate” segment that was live from Ravens’ Stadium with Clarissa Thompson interviewing fans. Still it’s a bit puzzling to me that the entire show doesn’t come from the stadium.
GAME BROADCAST UNDERWAY
It’s become a thing now in the NFL, when you hear Joe Buck’s voice, it’s a big event. Not saying that a Thursday night game with the lowly Jets and high-powered Ravens is an event, but a nationally televised game is, whether you like it or not. I think back to my childhood, it was the same when I heard Pat Summerall and John Madden. Their voices made me pay attention. It’s become that way with Buck and Troy Aikman.
The open was kept pretty simple and Buck actually set the stage for the fact “we’ll be talking a lot about (Ravens’ QB) Lamar Jackson.” He had a chance that night to become the QB with the most rushing yards in a single season in NFL history. It was good to set that storyline early because it makes you take notice. It’s also mentioned that the Ravens can wrap up a second straight AFC North title. It was smart to do that as well, because honestly there really isn’t much more to look at in a mismatch on paper.
A graphic supports the Jackson story when he comes onto the field for his first series. Of course with all the talk about his running, he throws a completion on the first play. After Jackson’s first run of the game, Aikman illustrates on replay just how tough it is defensively to figure out on the “read option” who has the ball and how to keep containment.
Jackson sets the record early in the first quarter and takes a big hit in achieving it. Aikman is right on it during a replay, pointing out “he’s going to remember that run for a couple of reasons, he took a big hit”. Aikman brought up the drawbacks to a running quarterback, especially as he points out, Jackson isn’t a big guy and the hits add up. Something to think about for sure. Jackson is taking a pounding in this game.
Buck brings up a great point on how Jackson has even improved his game since last season. Adding that last year, Jackson won 6 of the last 7 games to get the Ravens into the playoffs. He’s even more dangerous now that he’s a legit dual threat and his passing has been a bit more accurate.
In a late first quarter possession, the Ravens are moving the ball in Jets territory. They set up with an “empty backfield” and Aikman is right on it. “Most quarterbacks you know are going to throw the football, and there’s still a good chance he’ll (Jackson) keep this.” Sure enough after setting up for a pass, Jackson sneaks through and takes one up the field and goes out of bounds at the 6 yard line.
After the scamper, Buck sets up sideline reporter Erin Andrews with the fact that Jackson’s speed is “eye popping, must look even faster from down there…”. Great set up because Andrews has a story about Madden ’20 and the speed ratings. A graphic supports her story that Jackson’s speed rating is a 96, which is faster than Vick. This is the guy whose record was just broken. The quote indicates that Vick is ok about the record, but he’s a little “hot” about Jackson having a higher rating. Entertaining and a good graphic.
Buck and Aikman have been together a long time and you know what, it sounds like it. They have each other’s pacing and rhythm down and the banter is not forced, it just flows. They also seem to have each other’s backs.
When Jackson made that long run to the Jets 6, I referenced earlier, Aikman commented how he didn’t see a Jets’ defender “spying” on the QB. There was nothing but open real estate. I think Aikman wanted to set the record straight that he doesn’t like the use of a “spy” in those cases. Maybe there was a conversation in the booth during a commercial?
I say this because in the 2nd quarter after another long run by Jackson, Buck referenced a conversation he and Aikman had with Jets defensive coordinator Greg Williams. Now, Williams told them that the only way he’d use a spy is if he had a guy as fast as Jackson. He doesn’t. Aikman then got to interject his disdain for that thought on defense and actually thanked Buck on the air for helping to “clean that up”. Great teamwork.
I heard some good conversation late in the third quarter with the game starting to get out of hand. The producer showed a replay of a “sidearm” throw by Jackson that wound up zipping into the receiver’s hand. Aikman said he threw a “Kent Tekulve sidearm fastball in there,” in reference to the former Pirates closer. The discussion ensued about whether or not the Ravens have thought about tinkering with Jackson’s delivery. Aikman mentioned in a conversation with Ravens’ Offensive Coordinator Greg Roman, that the team had no plans to “fix” the delivery of the football, instead it did plan to continue progressing with Jackson’s footwork. From there the former QB Aikman told the story that when he struggled throwing, it was usually due to poor footwork. Talk about validating a conversation and the actions the Ravens will take with their young signal caller.
Aikman at the start of the fourth quarter had another very interesting piece of information on Baltimore running back Mark Ingram. He told the story about how Ingram didn’t want to continue sharing carries with Alvin Kamara in New Orleans. The fact Aikman brought forward was that Ingram’s QB actually had more carries at this point than Kamara. Now keeping in mind Kamara missed some time due to injury and that the Saints are primarily a pass first, run second offense, it’s still a fact that speaks loudly. Not too many running backs take a back seat to their quarterback when it comes to running the football. Thought provoking story that certainly can lead to a discussion.
This duo works and it showed in this game. They kept the conversation lively and interesting even after the game was out of reach for the Jets. Their ability to play off of each other and not cross lines is pretty amazing. Each guy seems to be in it for the “team” not themselves. You can tell as each took part in some self-deprecation only to be bailed out by his teammate.
To some Buck can come off as “snarky”, but it works, because most football fans watch games with a little “snark” themselves. The thing I really respect about Buck is, he’s a terrific traffic cop in the booth, orchestrating what the producers want to be shown, with excellent segues and knowledge. Thursday night’s telecast was good on all fronts, from the production to the talent. A touchdown for Fox.
Andy Masur is a columnist for BSM and works for WGN Radio as an anchor and play-by-play announcer. He also teaches broadcasting at the Illinois Media School. During his career he has called games for the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres and Chicago White Sox. He can be found on Twitter @Andy_Masur1 or you can reach him by email at Andy@Andy-Masur.com.
Charissa Thompson!!! Not Clarissa explains it all