‘Cruel and Unusual’ — ESPN Star Reacts As Al Michaels Gets Backlash for Lackluster Browns-Patriots Preseason Game

Brandon Astreicher Fri, August 28, 2026 at 4:07 AM UTC

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Dec 21, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Thursday Night Football Amazon Prime play-by-play announcer Al Michaels during the game between the Los Angeles Rams and the New Orleans Saints at SoFi Stadium. © Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The New England Patriots and the Cleveland Browns have their eyes set on roster cuts this weekend and the start of the regular season after their final preseason game.

Legendary broadcaster Al Michaels was on the call for their final preseason outing, and it appears he didn’t really bring his best stuff.

ESPN’s Mike Golic Jr. reacted to the backlash Michaels was receiving for his performance.

Mike Golic Jr. Defends Al Michaels From Criticism of Preseason Broadcast

Michaels was dealt a tough hand, having to broadcast the Browns-Patriots preseason finale.

Both teams agreed not to play their starters as they look to evaluate which fringe players will make the final 53-man roster. Michaels struggled to pronounce some of the players’ names and showed up with an undone button on his shirt.

He got grilled by some NFL fans on social media, but Golic wasn’t having it.

“Making him call preseason games feels cruel and unusual,” said Golic.

Michaels is not getting any younger at 81. He’s been calling major sporting events for over 50 years. He’s still calling games and doing what he loves.

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But preseason, where no key players are playing, might be asking a lot of Michaels, who sounded uninterested to some members of the NFL world. Golic didn’t agree with any criticism directed at Michaels because of the task he was assigned.

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It’s no easy task to call a game where the starters are off the field.

Dillon Gabriel lit up the Patriots’ defense, and WR Luke Floriea continued his strong preseason, but otherwise it was mostly a blowout for the Browns as they cruised to a big win. With the lack of stars on the field, Michaels drew a lot of attention because of his mediocre performance.

Even though it wasn’t the best game Michaels’ ever called, he still found a way to entertain some fans with a dig at President Donald Trump about renaming lakes and whether Lake Erie is actually still called Lake Erie.

It was also a special day away from the field for Michaels. It was his 60th wedding anniversary with his wife, Linda Anne Stamaton.

When he asked Browns head coach Todd Monken about what he thought of Gabriel’s first-half showing, Monken started his answer by congratulating Michaels and Stamaton on their anniversary.

The Michaels experience was a roller coaster, with both good and bad. It wasn’t his best performance, but in many respects it was still entertaining, and he successfully navigated a meaningless preseason game.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.

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