Al Michaels may have lost something of his fastball. But that doesn’t seem to have the iconic sportscaster mulling retiring anytime soon.
Michaels spoke to Andrew Marchand of The New York Post about his recent performance, and whether he has plans of hanging up the microphone in the near future.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m doing next year,” he told Marchand. “There’s no question about that in my mind.”
Michaels signed a three-year contract with Amazon to call Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football broadcast. Next season is the final year of his deal, which reportedly pays him between $500,000 and $1 million per game. Although next season is the final year on his contract, Michaels wouldn’t declare it the final one of his career, telling Marchand he has no desire to have a retirement tour.
“Look, when I’m done, it’s the way John Madden was done,” Michaels said. “Two words and a contraction: ‘It’s time.’ I don’t need any parade or that nonsense.”
Michaels might not need a parade whenever he retires, but hopefully he doesn’t want one for the announcement that he’s coming back next year either. Social media, albeit a microcosm of what the rest of the world and NFL fans think, has relished the opportunity to lambast the iconic sportscaster week after week.
“I don’t think I’m a lot different than I have been through the years,” Michaels told Marchand. “And if people you know want to say that ‘Al doesn’t sound as excited,’ hold on a second, folks. I’m doing the same game I’ve always done.”
The same game except for one glaring difference, the Thursday Night Football matchups pale in comparison to the much more prestigious Sunday Night Football and Monday Night Football games Michaels called throughout much of his broadcasting career. But instead of trying to elevate Amazon’s slate of games, Michaels has been more inclined to play down to the competition.
Last week, Michaels lacked enthusiasm on several big plays during the Thursday Night Football broadcast, including the final play. That was an end zone interception cementing the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 20-16 win over the Tennessee Titans.
The week prior, Michaels sucked the excitement out of a blocked field goal and a Hail Mary pass as time expired. And this isn’t a new revelation with Michaels. Viewers have noticed his deteriorating enthusiasm ever since he started calling a slate of games that he previously referred to as “crap.”
But despite incessant social media angst over Michaels’ performance the last two seasons, the renowned play-by-play voice won’t be surrendering to any calls for retirement. And that’s ultimately a good thing.
Is Michaels, at 78 years old, the elite announcer he was a decade ago? Probably not. Would Michaels’ recent performance warrant calling another Super Bowl? Probably not.
Does Michaels’ performance still warrant calling regular season NFL games? Absolutely. Michaels is more than good enough to still be calling mediocre regular season Thursday night matchups. And despite the way social media may act at times, there are plenty of fans who want Michaels to stick around the game for as long as he can.
