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Sports Seriously, USA TODAY
When it comes to criticism, Al Michaels couldn’t care less what you think.
One of the most respected voices in the NFL and sports broadcasting for over 50 years, Michaels has called some of the most exciting games throughout his career. However, Michaels faced a lot of judgment last season in his first season of calling “Thursday Night Football” on Amazon Prime, with several critics pointing out the play-by-play voice seems less than enthusiastic on several occasions, especially the 2022 wild card game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Chargers.
Michaels addressed the blowback he’s received with Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal, and reminded people he’s not going to let to the negative comments get to him.
“Look, sometimes I’ll take some (expletive),” Michaels said. “People say, ‘He didn’t get excited enough.’ What do you want me to do? Scream, holler, yell the game? That ain’t me. That ain’t (Joe) Buck, that ain’t (Jim) Nantz. I can’t pay attention to anti-social media. We live in a country with 330 million people. And if eight people rip you on social media, I’m going, ‘huh?’ Now anybody sitting in a basement has a platform. You can’t let things like that distress you. I’ve been doing this for so long. And I wouldn’t be here at this point still doing a major package if I was doing it the wrong way.”
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Michaels was also known to have ripped the “Thursday Night Football” schedule last season, and when his brother, David, told him not to do it on-air, he didn’t care.
“Watch what happens,” Michaels told his brother.
Maybe Michael’s on-air criticism of the schedule helped, as Amazon Prime will have several juicy matchups this year, starting with the Week 2 game between the Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles. Amazon also gets the first ever NFL Black Friday game between the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets. NFL owners also approved a move where “Thursday Night Football” games during Weeks 13-17 can be flexed for a more attractive matchup.
