Dr. Z's Commentator Rankings...

....sorry if this is a D_B, but I didn't see it anywhere.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/dr_z/02/07/announcers/index.html

This year's column is less funny, much more depressing. Probably because there's no Joe Theismann to make fun of and also because the commentary has gotten so bad.

And if Joe Buck never calls another football game, especially a Super Bowl, it will be too soon.

 

Bryant Gumble's crew was three stars?
Hell, he wouldn't be ahead of Barney Gumble...

 

Always a good read.

One of the more insipid cliches Zimmerman left out was, "He made a great football move."

 

You beat me there.

He gave marble-mouth an absolute free pass.

Might there be some kind of undercover nonagression pact involved, here?

Because there's no rational way BG gets off, unscathed, off his unspeakable performance this season.

 

I don't quite get the point of these rankings.

Every year Z ranks them in order of how easy it was for him to chart a game while watching. He is the only person on earth who gives a shit about that. The number of stars is determined by how frequently they rattle off the name of every player on the field.

And honestly, when you start criticizing an announcer because back in week whatever he said that a running back dodged a tackle -- but failed to specifically say that the tackler was Ray Lewis -- it's kind of pathetic.

 

Word for fuckin word.

I like Dr. Z. I respect his passion for the game and his high standards. But the shit he cares about is so "inside baseball" that it can't possibly register with much, if any, of his audience.

 

Have ENORMOUS respect for Z in terms of his historical body of work, and still find him a seasonal must-read.

 

I haven't seen many announcers who are worth my listening to them. Usually, most broadcast teams are so bad that I find myself muting the TV and doing my own play-by-play.

 

He gives Dick Stockton -- a guy who's been mailing it in for years -- a pass as well. Stockton botches names more than anyone in the business. Drives me absolutely crazy.

 

Concur. He's not as far gone as Summerall, but he seems about as gone as Keith Jackson was, the last year or so.

 

It actually should register with all of his audience because the guy has been writing his stuff for 40 years. It's not for novice fans or people who think Chris Berman is remotely entertaining. It's for people who love the technical intricacy of the game. For people like myself, who try to observe line play and figure out why some plays are more successful than others, he's a must read. Much like certain baseball fans make up the core Bill James/Rob Neyer's audience.

 

Dr. Z addresses the Bryant Gumble rating in his post-column mailbag:

<i>Three letters scolding me for not taking a heavier shot at Bryant Gumbel. The three, in order of appearance, are <b>Mitch of Mequon, Wisc., Fadi A. of Halifax, Nova Scotia,</b> and <b>Dave of Hoboken, N.J.</b> Maybe I should have, but most of the complaints about Gumbel are mistakes in names and facts, and those aren't as bad as deliberate errors, such as inordinately pushing the super stars, or belaboring an obvious point forever or neglecting to call a game fairly. Yeah, I know, he's weak, but I can move on quickly from his failings.</i>