The NFL’s regular season, as crazy as it sounds, is right around the corner.
Which means a yearly tradition is about to unfold in the Maguire household.
(NOTE- this will likely be pushed back to early November as I’m currently working on the broadcast team for a certain MLB squad that has a chance to play in the fall classic).
I’ll sit in my living room in Suburban Milwaukee. The flat screen has NFL Red Zone. My Fantasy Football teams are pulled up on my laptop. My tablet has NFL Sunday Ticket where I scroll around to games of interest (namely the ones I have money on).
Oh yea, and my ears are tuned to the NFL on the radio.
My Sirius/XM app is pulled up on my smartphone and I’ll surf from game-to-game listening to different home market radio broadcasts.
Yea, I’m THAT guy.
My ultimate dream was to be the play-by-play voice of the Detroit Lions. I grew up envisioning the day where they’d finally win that elusive Super Bowl and I’d have my dad in the radio booth sitting next to me and sharing a hug.
Sadly, those dreams were dashed when I realized that both the Lions and myself had one fatal flaw in common…neither of us were good enough to make that dream a reality.
But the love for hearing hometown and home team broadcasts has always remained.
There is a plethora of talented announcers who call NFL games on the radio. Let’s face it, depending on what team we grew up rooting for, we ALL have our favorites. I’m no exception.
There is a small group of announcers who, no matter what I’m doing, I’ll always stop and listen to. These are people whose work manages to garner my attention.
As we head towards kickoff of Week 1, I wanted to highlight them.
MERRILL REESE- PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
The dean of NFL announcers, Reese has been calling games for the Eagles since 1976. I always remember him being a staple on those mid-90s NFL film videos when you’d see Randall Cunningham, Herschel Walker and Eric Allen make big plays.
Reese sounds like someone who has seen it all. His booming baritone voice cuts through the clutter of any background noise and commands you to pay attention.
Take your bathroom breaks when Merrill takes his commercial breaks.
As cut-throat and political as our business is, I always marvel with reverence those who have been able to survive with the kind of longevity that Merrill has.
As long as he wants to call games, I’ll listen.
PAUL ALLEN- MINNESOTA VIKINGS
So, what happens when you take a horse track announcer and ask him to call NFL games? The answer is Paul Allen.
P.A. is no doubt one of a kind. Bombastic and often unfiltered, he’s one of the game’s most unique voices that, I honestly can’t get enough of. How many of his calls have gone viral? I’ve lost count.
When I listen to Allen, you can tell he’s having a good time and doesn’t take himself that seriously…but takes the wins and losses JUST as serious as the most die-hard of the Purple People Eaters. His calls are a roller coaster ride of emotion. He runs the gambit from humor, anger sadness and everything else in between.
He’s a must listen.
MITCH HOLTHUS- KANSAS CITY CHIEFS
Mitch’s game calls are as big and bold as an order of Arthur Bryant’s pulled pork (incidentally, the best you’ll find in the city of fountains). It’s amazing to me that he has the energy to make it through a full game broadcast.
That’s a tall task considering the fact he had to follow in the footsteps of some legendary local fixtures as Bill Grigsby and Kevin Harlan.
Mitch is the unquestioned spokesperson for the “Chiefs Kingdom”, an honor that he earned through years of being able to channel the passion of one of the best fan bases in the NFL.
Let’s face it, there is no better call in all the NFL than “TOUCHDOWN, KAN-ZA CITY!”
DAN MILLER- DETROIT LIONS
Yes, I’ll admit, I’m biased. The only team that I have had a consistent rooting interest in are the Detroit Lions. (I blame my father for such a poor upbringing).
Dapper Dan is the complete package. Entertaining, emotional, and honest. Dan knows EXACTLY how to talk to his audience. Lions fans are a tough crowd to win over and he has done that in an amazing way.
You can’t B-S us. We’ve seen it all. And Dan doesn’t even try to blow sunshine up our skirts. When the Lions stink, he acknowledges it. When they make a great play, he acts with the same amazement, jubilation, and relief that we all have.
No matter the situation, he’s saying EXACTLY what’s on all our minds. Win or lose.
Mostly lose.
There isn’t a Sunday that goes by during the season where I’m not listening to him call Lions games online. That won’t change as long as he has the gig.
I can’t wait for him to one day call a Lions Super Bowl winner. Hell, I’d settle for an appearance. That one may be a call for the ages that gives Al Michael’s “do you believe in miracles” a run for its money.
It’s got to happen someday, right?
Ryan Maguire is a columnist for BSM, and a longtime sports and news radio program director. He has managed KIRO-FM in Seattle, WQAM in Miami, 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh, 610 Sports in Kansas City, and 105.7/1250 The Fan in Milwaukee. Presently, Ryan serves as the Executive Producer of Chicago White Sox baseball on ESPN 1000 in Chicago. Originally from Michigan, Ryan still holds out hope that the Detroit Lions will one day deliver a Super Bowl title. He can be reached on Twitter @RMaguire1701.
I think you missed at least 1 who often goes overlooked Steve Raebil of the Seattle Seahawks. He is as crazy to listen to as any of these others I miss the days when he was paired with Warren Moon. That was the best local radio booth in the NFL. Steve has been with the Seahawks since day one as a player a PR director color guy then play by play guy. He is fantastic. his call of TOUCHDOWN SEAHWAKS is almost as classic as KC”s