The NFL playoffs are here, and Saturday night’s prime-time matchup between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Chargers is pulling out all the stops. Not only do we get to watch two of the league’s premier quarterbacks do battle, but we also get the return of a legend in the broadcast booth at NBC. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s the return of Al Michaels!
Is Al Michaels Returning to NBC This Weekend?
Okay, technically, Michaels hasn’t really gone anywhere. The 78-year-old broadcast legend has just been busy working in the Thursday Night Football booth for Amazon this season. But now, he will return home to NBC. Michaels become a staple for the network’s Sunday Night Football broadcast, working as the play-by-play announcer from 2006-2022.
Back during the offseason, when it was announced that Amazon had purchased the rights to Thursday Night Football, murmurs of who would be in the booth ran rampant. Ultimately, Amazon was able to secure Michaels. However, it is important to note that NBC granted Michaels emeritus status so that he could still contribute to the network’s portfolio, including one playoff game and other events like the Olympics.
Michaels will be joined by former Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy for the first time in his career. Dungy has worked five Super Bowl broadcast assignments with NBC and currently serves as an analyst on NBC’s “Football Night in America.”
Michaels Makes Headlines With Amazon
Although it is only his first season with NFL’s new partner, Michaels has made some headlines this year. Thursday Night Football has seen some brutal games this season, which realistically is not the fault of anyone. When the league scheduled the Indianapolis Colts vs. Denver Broncos game for Week 4, they were probably expecting a decent battle between Matt Ryan and Russell Wilson.
That is not what they got.
Instead, Michaels and his partner in the booth, Kirk Herbstreit, watched a football game that ended 12-9 in overtime with zero touchdowns scored.
During the broadcast, Michaels was quite vocal in his criticism of the game. Michaels recently spoke with The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch and touched on some of his comments this season.
“I think I’m to the point in my life and career, having watched sports since I was six years old, I feel what the crowd feels,” Michaels said. “The Denver-Indianapolis game [in] Week 4 was a dreadful game. No other way to describe it. No touchdowns.”
He was also asked if Amazon or the NFL had any sort of criticism surrounding how he handled the lackluster game.
“From the Amazon people, nothing but support. I think they understood what this was,” Michaels said. “We’re making the most of it. I mean, you just can’t oversell something. Do you want me to sell you a 20-year-old Mazda? That’s what you’re asking me to do. I can’t sell you a used car.”
“I’ve kind of gone down that road a little bit in games that have been bad in the past. But this game was horrifically bad. What were you supposed to do at that point? And away I went,” Michaels explained.
For Jacksonville and Los Angeles’ sake, they better put on a good show, or Michaels might have some snarky comments reserved for them as well.