Fox NFL analyst Greg Olsen has dealt with his fair share of unique circumstances in his broadcasting career over the past couple of years.
The Carolina Panthers standout has gone from a lame-duck analyst on Fox’s lead team, calling games alongside play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt before ceding the job to Tom Brady, to now settling into Fox’s No. 2 booth with play-by-play announcer Joe Davis.
The new assignment, however, comes with its own unique set of circumstances when Davis takes off to serve as Fox’s lead MLB announcer during baseball’s postseason.
Enter Jason Benetti.
Benetti is a Swiss Army knife as a play-by-play announcer. He currently serves as the lead on Detroit Tigers broadcasts, calls college football and basketball for Fox, and fills in for Davis in his absence.
Viewers generally saw Benetti as a seamless fit with Olsen during the duo’s debut together for Sunday afternoon’s Cleveland Browns-Washington Commanders game.
Jason Benetti-Greg Olsen broadcast booth as A team as it gets for a non A team duo.
— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) October 6, 2024
Why aren’t @jasonbenetti and @gregolsen88 the primary booth? What a duo https://t.co/5X0fcb5fYx
— (re)tweets about baseball (@CheeseTweeted22) October 6, 2024
That didn’t stop the self-deprecating Benetti from getting a sly dig in on his new partner during the first quarter of the broadcast.
Jason Benetti: You going for this?
Greg Olsen: I am. I’m aggressive by nature. Jason, I know we haven’t worked a lot together.
Benetti: I can tell. It comes through the TV.pic.twitter.com/5gxmiYyrNN
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 6, 2024
To his credit, Olsen didn’t miss a beat, giving a quick chuckle and going right back into his point about why the Commanders should go for it on 4th down. The analyst has proven himself to be a bit of a chameleon when it comes to working with a number of different play-by-play announcers, adapting to each one of his partners’ styles.
The pair’s successful broadcast also shows just how deep Fox’s bench is for play-by-play talent. The ability to pluck a Benetti-level talent off the sidelines is a testament to the rest of the network’s broadcast pairings.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.