How have the many, many TV broadcast and altcast teams done calling the 2024 NFL season to date? We asked Awful Announcing readers to weigh in on 25 booths, and they delivered, with more than 2,400 respondents and more than 50,000 individual votes cast.
As with our scorebug rankings, college football announcer rankings, rules analyst rankings, and more, each booth was graded from A to F, with readers providing comments on individual teams as well. We then converted the letter grades from those responses to numerical grades, with A as 4 and Fs as 0, and ranked the booths accordingly.
The average grade across the 25 booths was a 2.43. That’s down from the 2.49 mark last year and the 2.64 for the 2022 season. Some of that is about our expansion of this to include one-offs and altcasts, with several of those ranking quite low. We had seven teams grade below 2.0 (a C) this year, compared to four for the 2023 season. Three of those seven were teams that were only together for one game.
The 2.43 average grade here is slightly below the 2.45 for the top 25 CFB announcing booths this year, and also below the 2.58 for the nine most prominent NFL/CFB rules analysts. As per CBS and Fox, the six CBS teams ranked here averaged a 2.51, while the six Fox teams averaged a 2.34. Those numbers were 2.61 and 2.33 respectively last year.
The more than 50,000 individual votes is the highest number we’ve seen for these rankings since 2018 and is almost triple what we saw last year. But it comes with the caveat of that expansion to cover one-off broadcasts and altcasts, leading to significantly more teams being ranked (25 versus 17 in 2023 and 2022, 15 in 2020 and 2018, and 14 in 2019). Thus, an individual voter could weigh in on 10 more teams this year than in 2018. (And many did; the maximum total of individual votes we could have received with this many respondents was 61,500, and the average voter cast 20 votes.)
Without further ado, let’s get to the grades and selected reader comments (sometimes lightly edited for spelling and grammar). There are a lot here, so we’ve broken it up into three pages. Booths 25-16 are below, booths 15 to 6 are here, and the top five booths are here.
25. Paul Burmeister, Kurt Benkert, Chad Johnson (EA Sports NFL Maddencast on Peacock): 1.40
Paul Burmeister, Kurt Benkert, and Chad Johnson on the Maddencast.
Most common grade: C (34.4 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 48.4 percent
This Madden-focused altcast for the Kansas City Chiefs’ 27-19 win over the Houston Texans on Dec. 21 with play-by-play voice Paul Burmeister, Madden expert/former NFL quarterback Kurt Benkert, and former NFL WR/current NightCap co-host Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson (also famed for his love of Madden), received by far the lowest rankings in our poll. It also drew the fewest grades, 1,591. But more than a quarter of those grades were Fs, leading to the number here.
As for the comments here, some readers had praise for Burmeister and criticism for the others on this broadcast, noting “Burmeister deserves so much better” and “Burmeister was fine and kept things moving.” (It’s unfortunate for him that he’s in the 25th slot here, as he also wound up there in this year’s CFB announcer rankings, with many there still praising him and bashing analyst Colt McCoy.) Others noted that it seemed tough to balance the two analysts, saying the booth “seems kind of crowded” and “stop paying two color guys to do the work of one.”
Both Benkert and Johnson received love them or hate them notes. Two viewers wrote Benkert should be “scooped up by a major network” or get “a much bigger shot,” but another said he “shouldn’t be allowed to look at a football.” And Johnson received responses of everything from “sucks at commentary” to “a pleasant surprise” and “the best at everything he’s doing.”
24. Chris Myers, Mark Schlereth (F0x): 1.68
Most common grade: C (31.9 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 59.4 percent
This is Myers’ fourth pairing in the last five years. He worked with Daryl Johnston in 2019 and 2021, with Brock Huard and Greg Jennings in 2020, and with Robert Smith in 2022 and 2023. Myers and Smith got a 1.42 last year, 17th of the 17 teams we graded, while Schlereth worked with Adam Amin last year and got a 2.01, 12th of 17. This team received the most F votes (462), but got almost as many Bs (458). They received 1,985 grades.
In the comments, many seemed to dislike one member or the other of this booth. One reader wrote “Schlereth is good and he was a very good partner with Amin in previous years. Didn’t deserve the downgrade,” while another called him “the worst color commentator” and a third called him “like watching a game with your drunk uncle.”
For Myers, one respondent said he “really struggled this year” and others argued he’s better as a host or a reporter, but others called him “good down-to-down” and “a Swiss army knife for Fox.” There were also several suggestions this booth lacked chemistry, with one respondent calling it “oil and water.”
23. Chris Rose, Joe Thomas (NFL Network): 1.85
Most common grade: C (41.7 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 68.0 percent
This booth only called one game this year (Patriots-Jaguars from London on Oct. 20), and neither announcer called enough games last year to qualify under our previous rankings system. Their second-most common grade was a B (361 votes), but that wasn’t enough to overcome their relatively high numbers of Ds (295) and Fs (237). They received 1,665 grades.
A lot of the negative comments here were about Rose, with several saying they prefer his work as a host. But one reader called him “surprisingly good out of studio,” and one praised him while criticizing Thomas. The larger theme here was some praise for Thomas, though, with readers describing him with lines like “has potential,” “could be a A-level announcer if given the spot,” and “engaging and I wish we heard him more frequently.”
Thus, it’s interesting that this booth ranked lower (although not by much) than Rose’s other single-game pairing with Ross Tucker. But that perhaps illustrates divides between all voters and the voters who commented, which was optional.
22. Chris Rose, Ross Tucker (NFLN): 1.85
Most common grade: C (37.3 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 67.1 percent
This booth also only called one game this year, Chargers-Patriots on Dec. 28. Their second-most common grade was a B (369 votes). They placed higher than Rose/Thomas despite more Fs (266), but that came due to more As (136 versus 78). This team received 1,692 grades, slightly more than the 1,665 for Rose and Thomas.
Despite the relatively low grade, this booth drew a lot of praise in the comments. That included everything from “Everyone loved this game, great duo” to “Awesome, prepared,” “underrated,” “extremely knowledgeable,” and “Should be permanent teammates.”
Both Rose (“always good to hear”) and Tucker (“I enjoy Ross’s energy and knowledge of the game,” “so funny”) drew individual praise, but also individual criticisms. There were further lines of people preferring Rose in studio and criticisms for Tucker of “terrible,” “annoying voice” and more. But the comments came in more positive than you’d expect given the overall grade, again showing the divide between all voters and voters who commented.
21. Spero Dedes, Adam Archuleta (CBS): 1.91
Most common grade: C (43.6 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 69.8 percent
This is this booth’s second year together: they drew a 1.94 last year, 15th of 17 booths. Both scored higher in 2022, with Dedes getting a 2.09 with Jay Feely and Archuleta, and Greg Gumbel receiving a 2.22. Their second-most common grade was a B (441 votes), but those were largely canceled out by their Ds (418). They received 1,906 grades.
In the comments, the most common refrain for this duo was “solid,” and they got some praise for their chemistry. There was also a lot of discussion of the poor quality of games they received, with some people individually arguing that both Dedes and Archuleta deserve better, and some lobbying for better games for the pairing.
For individual praise, Archuleta got lines of “has a knack for articulating the flow of the game” and “top notch,” while Dedes got lines like “pro” and “grossly underrated.” One respondent said they’d give Dedes an A but Archuleta only a high C. Interestingly, Dedes’ voice saw both praise (“great pipes,” “great voice for the dramatic”) and criticism (“annoying,” “you’ve had that cold for a few years now”). And Archuleta took criticism such as “hardly adds anything meaningful to a game he calls.”
20. Andrew Catalon, Tiki Barber, Jason McCourty (CBS): 1.96
Most common grade: C (41.4 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 70.0 percent
Last year, the team of Catalon, Barber, and Matt Ryan drew a 2.28, 10th of 17 booths. With Ryan moving to The NFL Today studio this season, McCourty came in to work with this team, but our readers seem not enthusiastic about that change. They did get Bs as their second-most common grade (488), but got a lot of Ds (455) and Fs (131). They received 1,955 grades.
Many of the comments here were in praise of Catalon. A few of those lines on him included “my favorite CBS announcer, an absolute pro,” “a solid ringmaster,” ” the most underrated play-by-play announcer in all of the NFL and could easily be the number one announcer for any network,” “a top play-by-play guy and has a fantastic voice,” and “shines, matches moments, adds interesting/relevant detail, makes his partners better.” Meanwhile, Barber got the most individual criticism (“insufferable,” “boring,” “just not likable”), and several noted they’d give the booth a higher grade without him, but one respondent would prefer a two-man booth with just him and Catalon, and another one called him “very insightful.”
Reception for McCourty was mixed, with some impressed (“amazing,” “thoughtful and never too biased,” “has a lot of upside”), but others bashing him as “awful” or complaining about his voice. And then there was the issue of the three-person booth; many respondents complained about it, with several lobbying for Catalon/McCourty and one arguing for Catalon/Barber. But multiple respondents liked this particular three-person approach, with some citing “good chemistry” between this trio.
19. Tom McCarthy, Jay Feely, Ross Tucker (CBS): 1.99
Most common grade: C (40.6 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 70.2 percent
In 2023, McCarthy, Feely, and James Lofton earned a 1.98, 14th of 17 booths. The grade’s almost the same this year with Lofton out and Tucker in. The voting here was quite symmetrical, with them receiving almost the same numbers of Bs as Ds (442 to 426) and As and Fs (128 to 148). They received 1,925 grades.
Much of the praise here was for Tucker. Some of that included “needs to be on every game, his energy is amazing,” ” truly a natural, exciting, knowledgeable and just an all-around good time to watch and listen to,” “most knowledgeable color guy, yet so underrated and underused,” “I learn something new every time I listen to Ross,” and “hilarious.” McCarthy drew a lot of praise as well, from “amazing” to “solid” to “terrific on any sport.” But both had critics as well, with one reader saying “I mute Ross Tucker every time he starts talking.”
A lot of the criticism here was about Feely, with several saying they’d give a McCarthy/Tucker booth a higher grade. Complaints about him included relating too much to kicking and talking over the other two. Tucker also got some criticism for talking over his partners, and this three-person booth got more particular complaints on that front than other ones evaluated here. However, some respondents liked the chemistry and said they wanted to see this group on higher-profile games.
18. Drew Carter, Mina Kimes, Dan Orlovsky (Simpsons Funday Football on Disney+/ESPN+): 2.01
Most common grade: C (22.3 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 62.4 percent
We have our first passing grade! While there are challenges in comparing a single broadcast (and especially an altcast) to season-long booth tandems, it is interesting to see what readers thought of the team for this animated altcast and how that stacks up to other grades.
This booth received much higher grades than the team for Peacock’s EA Sports NFL Maddencast and the two NFL Network single-game teams, but lower grades than the ManningCast and the other single-game normal broadcasts on Netflix and Peacock. Interestingly, they drew between 300 and 425 votes at every grade; their passing grade percentage is much lower than some booths below them, but their high number of As (362) helped offset that. They received 1,868 votes overall, well below most of the season-long booths but significantly ahead of the Maddencast.
In the comments, there were a lot of plaudits for Kimes (“the best analyst by far”) and criticisms for Orlovsky, such as “The A is for Mina Kimes. Dan Orlovsky is absolute crap at his job,” “I would have given you an A, Mina, but Dan Orlovsky is quite possibly the dumbest analyst I’ve ever heard,” “Mina gets an A, the rest are just okay,” and “Orlovsky drags everyone else down.” However, some liked both of them as “amazing knowledgeable commentators.”
Some praised Kimes’ background as a journalist and fan rather than an ex-player (“a wonderful breath of fresh air”), and she drew lots of praise for her Simpsons knowledge and ability to work in references. But some said they don’t get the appeal of watching her, and others noted their personal dislike of her with lines like “woman is a big lib.” Carter drew some love as well, including a comment of “next generation star,” but one respondent would have preferred this with the whole NFL Live team and no standard play-by-play voice.
There were also a lot of comments about both the altcast idea overall and this specific altcast. Some of the lowest grades came with the bashing of altcasts in general (“overblown and already irrelevant,” “dump,”), while others hated this specific one (“Nothing personal against any of them, just the Simpsons alt-cast altogether.”). Others liked the idea of this altcast, but not the execution.
But many raved about this, from “did a great job with the gimmick” to “My kids loved this. I appreciated all the references Kimes was able to sprinkle in” to “love the youngbloods approach.” And, considering that this was a just-passing grade overall, the most fitting comment might be “Perfectly cromulent.” (Remarkably, this was one of three “cromulent” comments in the overall poll, all from different respondents, and the other two were for booths with no connection to The Simpsons.)
17. Adam Amin, Mark Sanchez (Fox): 2.02
Most common grade: C (31.3 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 70.8 percent
This booth almost got more Bs (634) than Cs (638), but not quite. It’s their first year together, with Amin and Mark Schlereth getting a 2.01 (12th of 17 teams) last year and Sanchez and Kevin Kugler getting a 2.08 (8th of 17). They got a passing grade overall but were held back by a pretty high number of F grades (355) relative to others. They received 2,041 grades overall.
In the comments, both of these announcers took significant individual praise and criticism, but the praise was higher for Amin. Some lines on him included “a very solid play-by-play man,” “the best,” “he will be a #1 pxp one day,” “a top play-by-play announcer already,” “carries this booth,” “awesome,” and “a hidden gem,” and he got year-over-year praise for dialing back on “needless yelling.” However, some called him “not a football announcer” and “middle of the line for play-by-play announcers,” and said he “gets too excited sometimes.”
For Sanchez, there was more negativity, from “adds very little” to “so, so bad,” “dreadful,” “worst diction on TV,” and “Mark Sanchez as an analyst is like watching the butt fumble over and over.” (That was one of many butt fumble references.) But he drew praise like “excellent at breaking down plays,” “a star,” and “can be funny.” However, some wondered about the way this pairing worked, from “Sanchez has hurt Amin” to “Amin doesn’t seem happy to be there” to “Adam has struggled to find chemistry with Mark.” But a smaller group praised the booth’s chemistry, again showing how everything with broadcast teams can be in the eye of the beholder.
16. Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma (Fox): 2.07
Most common grade: B (37.4 percent of votes)
Percentage of A/B/C grades: 71.9 percent
We have our first team where B was the most common response, and it wasn’t close, with this group drawing 773 Bs to 546 Cs. However, they did get 383 Fs, which is why they’re not higher. They’ve been together since the 2020 season and notched a 2.01 (13th of 17 teams last year), so this is an improvement for them. They received 2,069 grades overall.
A lot of the comments here praised Albert but not Vilma. Those included “Albert saves this from sinking too much. Vilma seemingly just makes it up as it goes. Possibly the weakest Fox combo” to “Kenny is great, Vilma brings it down,” “Love Kenny, can’t say the same about Vilma,” and “Kenny deserves a better partner in the booth.”
However, Albert did draw some criticism, from “dry as white toast” to “lost his fastball.” And Vilma took individual fire as well, from “talks more about himself than the teams playing” to “listening to him call games, you’d swear he wasn’t familiar with the sport” and “the worst color commentator going today.” The combination did pick up some praise, though, with many referencing the time they’ve had working together. Some of the compliments included “good chemistry,” “years of being solid together,” and “really been impressed by this pairing.”
