Doctor Z's Football Media Rankings Are Out
Thursday, February 07, 2008
I couldn't stand Dr. Z growing up because he never picked the Redskins in any key games. Stuff like that will lead you to hold grudges as an adult. His shoddy picking skills aside I to look forward to his TV Commentator Rankings every year.
Unlike last year's list though this one is pretty hit and miss for the most part. He ranks the teams based on a 5-star system and here are some of the highlights (my comments are in italics)....
The Hits:
5 STARS
"None. Last year's only five star team, ESPN's second unit, was broken up. Dick Vermeil is tending his beautiful vineyards in Calistoga, Brad Nessler is back in college and Ron Jaworski ... ah, this is a new, corporate, center stage Jaws who makes me want to cry."
(I can buy that. I don't feel that way about Jaws, but I could see how he could rub some people the wrong way in that environment.)
Kevin Harlan and Rich Gannon, CBS
I'll say it again. Any game Harlan works will get a good grade because he and Rosen are my favorite play-by-play guys.
(I'm beginning to feel that way about Harlan as well...in any Sport. I always hate his partners though. Doug Collins and Rich Gannon always do the "When I was coaching"/"When I was playing" crap for 4 quarters.)
Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, CBS
Well, Phil used to be a friend, but I'm sure he thinks I'm the worst kind of traitor during the past few years because, as his star had risen to the top of the network's roster, his ability to tell me stuff I don't know has not progressed. Which is a long way of saying that, whereas he'll provide a good sense of excitement when he's doing a significant game, he has fallen into cliché patterns that don't help.
(Dead on assessment of Simms right there)
The Misses:
Jim Nantz and Phil Simms, CBS
And Simms, who is blessed by working with one of the smoothest, most competent play-by-play men in the business, feels compelled to constantly remind us about the things he predicted early in the show and how they're working out, etc., neglecting the stuff that he had wrong.
(Dead wrong assessment of Nantz right there)
Dick Stockton and Brian Baldinger, Fox
Down a star from last year. Baldy used to be one of the best, but he has come down with a severe case of talkitis. It's tough to shut him up, and working with one of the most modest and polite people in the business only spurs him on.
(I'm pretty sure he's the only person on the planet that can stand Baldinger.)
1 STAR to 1½ STARS
A blanket grouping, which I've never done before, but I'm getting tired of leveling the same criticisms at the same people, who are doing the best they can and make some errors, get some things right, don't really tell me anything I don't know. This group includes the following:
J.C. Pearson and either Matt Vasgersian or Matt Devlin, Fox
Gus Johnson and Steve Tasker, CBS
(What is it about the older generation that think Sports can't be exciting. I like each and every one of those people....yes even Tasker. Just blows my mind how an entertaining broadcast with excitement is lost on some people)
All three of those misses palled in comparison to this final paragraph....
Oops, I've forgotten a team, the one-shot threesome of Mikes, Greenberg, Golic and Ditka, lashed to the mast for an evening of Arizona-San Francisco for ESPN's second game in Week 1. Yes, an honest job. Real football. The booth clear of debris. Call it 3 ½ stars.Are you kidding me? There's no way he watched that game. That was the worst game I've ever seen from a broadcast standpoint and they would get negative stars from me. But again, just like Dr. Z's views...these are just opinions which is what makes the internet great. Read his whole article and share your favorites from this past season.
Oh and his favorite team this past season was Sam Rosen and Tim Ryan......riiiiiiight.
TV Commentator Rankings (SI.com)
One Last NFL Announcing Post- Part 1 (Awful Announcing)
17 Comments:
I was referring to this my friend..."And Simms, who is blessed by working with one of the smoothest, most competent play-by-play men in the business"
I think the assessment of the older generation not appreciating excitement in play calls can be traced back to ESPN. The use of the idiotic catch phrases is done to take away from the action. I guess excitement can be confused with also seeking attention for the announcer and not the game.
That could very well be the case. Could just be different generations of Sports viewing.
Huh? Harlan and Cross didn't get 5 stars. I read the article a few minutes, there were no 5 star teams at all.
SSR's Favorite Announcing Team:
Matt Vasgersian, Goose and Daryl Johnston for that 2-3 week slate.
F--- Dr. Z, spends years keeping Art Monk out of the Hall and finally says "My line has been “catching 800 8-yard hooks just doesn’t do it for me.” Maybe it’s time to take a closer look at that rather supercilious observation. Maybe a player who has drawn such a loyal following, year in year out, deserves more serious consideration. And perhaps those Redskin fans aren’t mere nudniks, as I’ve unfortunately come to regard them, but people who might, just might, have a more accurate reading on the situation than I do. I’m not saying that you’re swinging me over completely; it’s just that I’m a lot closer to Monk’s legitimacy as a Hall of Famer than I used to be."
hmm, maybe you should take a closer look at someone who's been a finalist for (at the time) 7 straight years? ya don't say, it's not like it's your bleepin job,
nah i'm not bitter
Never mind AA.....
I can't stand Dr. Zzzzzz either. He never picks the Seahawks either.
I don't see what Dr Z sees in Jim Natz. I don't find him to be that exciting of an announcer when he does a football game. I think Natz cares more aobut Golf and the NCAA tournament than football. And I'm sure if you asked Simms he would rather wrok with Greg Gumble again than do another game with Nantz.
I've always thought that Dr. Z knows nothing about football. From this article, my argument is justified.
Dr. Z is the ultimate asshole. Met him once and never want to meet him again.
His columns are somewhat entertaining though and I read him. I guess that is all he cares about though.
If Dr Z thinks that Sam Rosen and Tim Ryan are that good of an announcing team, then why are they sutnk doing games that only go to 10% of the country? This shows what a nit-wit Dr Z realy is.
Dr. Z is the ultimate douchebag. I heard him hang up on one of the radio talking heads during an interview once.
I do like Kevin Harlan though - he's the white Gus Johnson. RIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES!!!!!!!!!!
And I get the feeling Nantz doesn't care much about basketball either. I don't think he works any games until conference tournament weekend.
Big guys are better analysts? He obviously has never listened to Brian Baldinger, Bill Maas, or Paul Maguire.
Dr. Z got most of it right, IMO, but his misses were just god awful.
dr. z looks for substance over style; information over schtick. tv looks for -- demands -- style over substance.
personally, i don't need someone to scream for me to understand i should be excited. tv sports, a visual medium, will tell me if i should be excited by what i see, not by the decibel level of some blowdry.
But Dr Z gets a hard-on for these guys who tell him down and distance and where the ball is. Those are things you can see just by looking at the screen.
In misses, isnt Z talking about Simms? You call it a dead wrong assessment of Nantz......