Al Michaels and the NFL Playoffs have been synonymous for the better part of 5 decades. Arguably one of the greatest to ever call the sport, had a long run at both ABC and NBC. He joined Amazon Prime Video Thursday Night Football last season, but was given ‘emeritus’ status at the Peacock Network which called for him to announce the playoffs for them. That ride is coming to an end this year. NBC announced its playoff assignments for the upcoming postseason and Michaels is not on the roster.
Michaels is “technically” under contract to do the postseason, but now will sit it out. The news of this change was reported by the New York Post earlier in the week. Al Michaels was interviewed by the paper last month, saying he believed that the deal was still in place for him to be in the booth and sounded unaware when told that it was in limbo.
“It’s in my deal,” Michaels said. “Where are you hearing that from? That’s part of my deal. Are you hearing something that I’m not hearing?” he told Post.
Replacing him on the telecast will be the team led by Noah Eagle, along with Todd Blackledge and Kathryn Tappen for one of NBC’s postseason games. Last year, Al Michaels and Tony Dungy called the crazy Jaguars comeback win over the Chargers. The broadcast had fans and media critics alike panning it for a perceived lack of enthusiasm.
That game, which could wind up being the last one for Michaels on NBC, coupled with the arrival of Noah Eagle made this move much easier for the executives at NBC. Prior to Eagle bursting on the scene, the choices for the secondary play-by-play role and were limited basically to Jac Collinsworth and Jason Garrett. The Notre Dame duo could not in good conscience be elevated to such a spot.
Neither are ready for that type of spotlight. Collinsworth hasn’t seemed to improve much in his calling of games and Garrett still seems like he’s forcing things on the broadcasts. Garrett is much better served in a studio role at this point.
Eagle, though, has risen up the ranks quickly. Putting him on a playoff game may seem to some like a reach, but it really isn’t. The 27-year-old did a very good job in his first season calling the Big Ten. There was a lot of underlying pressure on Eagle, considering how much NBC paid for the rights to the conference games and how much importance was placed on those games.
Eagle’s best days are still ahead of him, but getting him ready for big moments can only help him and the network at the same time. Later this month, Eagle and Blackledge will handle the Steelers and Bengals game airing on NBC and on Peacock.
Michaels is a legend. Imagining an NFL postseason without him is hard to do. It’s also difficult to believe that NBC would do him like this as well. Two years ago, Michaels called the Superbowl and now he’s being replaced. I know some are saying, he’s lost a step and they’ll point to recent Thursday Night Football games as an example.
As I have stated here in this column on a number of occasions, Al Michaels deserves the benefit of all doubts. He’s earned the right to broadcast as long as he wants. Also, to call it quits on his terms. It’s being reported by the Post that there has been acrimony in the relationship between Michaels and NBC executives for “a while”, but it’s been hidden from public view. The tension in the relationship doesn’t make the decision to move on from Michaels the right call. If it’s in the deal, it should be honored.
Most veteran broadcasters aren’t the same as they were when first starting out. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. Play-by-play announcers evolve, becoming more confident and seasoned as they progress in their career. Michaels has forgotten more about the craft than most of us will ever know. I still think of him as a ‘big game’ announcer, even if his style has changed a bit from previous years.
For his part, Al Michaels isn’t thinking about retirement. He plans to be back in the booth for 2024 on the Amazon Prime Thursday Night telecasts.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m doing next year,” Michaels told the New York Post. “There’s no question about that in my mind.”
Michaels poo-pooed any talk of a farewell parade of sorts, if and when he decides to shut it down for good.
“Look when I’m done. It’s the way John Madden was done. Two words and a contraction: ‘It’s time.’ I don’t need any parade or that nonsense,” he said.
Every one of the greats eventually gives way to the younger generation of talent. But this isn’t the way to do it. This is no slight to Eagle, who has a tremendous career ahead of him. There is not a doubt in my mind about that. He’s poised and polished and not even 30 yet. His time will come and likely very soon.
Michaels shouldn’t be disrespected like this by the network. They have a deal with him, so why not honor that commitment? Even if there is discord among the parties, the audience shouldn’t be cheated out of hearing Michaels calling playoff football.
Michaels defined the NFL on NBC, when it secured the rights to Sunday Night Football in 2006. He teamed up with the late John Madden and then Chris Collinsworth, through the 2022 season. He was demoted in favor of Mike Tirico who had been promised the chair by NBC.
Michaels eventually landed with Prime, but that vague ‘emeritus’ status seemed to allow for audiences to get a taste of him during the postseason. Now it seems like the execs have gone back on that ‘status’ and silenced the long-time broadcaster.
The critics’ voices seem to be the ones that are being heard the loudest. I don’t know maybe NBC caved to the volleys of “he’s lost a step”, “retire” and “his fastball is gone.” If so, that’s a shame because Al Michaels still has gas in the tank.
I understand there is no loyalty when it comes to these decisions anymore. It’s all about “What have you done for me lately?” It’s a “How can we change what doesn’t really need to be changed?” kind of move. It’s one playoff game. He’s called 11 Super Bowls and countless other playoff games on his resume.
Al Michaels is more than capable of handling it. Plus, now that you have a good alternative booth, why not give it some time to cultivate even more chemistry together? Allow Eagle and Blackledge to grow together in calling games before a move like this becomes permanent. Having too much talent is a great problem to have, but apparently not in this case.
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.
