Last week, Philadelphia sports radio host Angelo Cataldi declared Dick Stockton of FOX, the worst play-by-play announcer in the history of television during his morning show on 94 WIP.
The 76-year old Stockton, a Philadelphia native, has enjoyed a renowned broadcasting career spanning five decades, but in Cataldi’s opinion,” He’s awful, awful, awful! I can’t listen to one play he calls!”
As he was getting set to call the Eagles and Bears game this past Sunday, Stockton spoke to the Philadelphia Inquirer about the criticism.
“When someone is just mean like that, I think it’s more a reflection of who they are than what I did,” Stockton said of Cataldi’s comments. “I remember critics over a decade ago saying I should quit or be retired. It goes with the territory.”
Cataldi doubled down on his opinion after reading Stockton’s rebuttal, challenging fans to listen to Sunday’s Eagles/Bears broadcast on FOX and judge the call themselves. “Listen to the Dick Stockton broadcast today on Fox and let me know who was right,” Cataldi wrote on Twitter early Sunday morning. “If he is not ruining the game for you — if he is even just competent — let me know. I have been listening to him for 40 years. There is zero chance you will enjoy his work. Zero.”
Although possibly sparked by Cataldi’s critique, Stockton’s call on Sunday was met with negative social media reaction from the audience.
Stockton wasn’t the only FOX NFL play-by-play announcer to receive criticism Sunday. Chris Kinard, program director for Washington DC’s 106.7 The Fan questioned the work of Chris Myers during his call of Sunday’s Redskins/Bills contest.
Although Kinard didn’t share a specific issue he had with Myers’ work on the call, it likely had to do with the announcer believing it was the first time quarterback Dwayne Haskins was on the field. Sunday was Haskins first start, but it was the third time this season the rookie quarterback saw action.
Like Cataldi with Stockton, Kinard also wasn’t alone in his criticism of Myers.
Brandon Contes is a freelance writer for BSM. He can be found on Twitter @BrandonContes. To reach him by email click here.
