Fox’s Greg Olsen defends Eagles-Commanders broadcast
“They lose for the first time in months after giving up 36 points and we didn’t make enough excuses for them,” Olsen wrote jokingly of the Eagles and their fans.
Fox Sports announcer Greg Olsen has proven himself to be one of the best NFL analysts, including his widely praised call during the Eagles’ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII.
But Sunday, Olsen took to social media to defend himself after a small subset of Eagles fans accused him of bias during the loss to the Washington Commanders.
The main beef coming from fans: Olsen and play-by-play announcer Joe Davis didn’t emphasize the impact of Jalen Hurts getting knocked out of the game early enough. Some fans also felt the duo appeared to be rooting for the Commanders’ comeback win, capped by Jayden Daniels last-second touchdown throw to Jamison Crowder.
“You spent the entire second half openly rooting for Washington and bemoaning every misfortune they suffered,” former Inquirer and Daily News staff writer and Les Bowen wrote on social media, summing up the main complaint from fans.
“Someone tell Joe Davis, who keeps saying it’s preposterous that Washington leads Philly, that the Eagles DON’T HAVE THEIR STARTING QUARTERBACK,” wrote Sports Illustrated writer and podcast host Jimmy Traina.
Olsen didn’t address the claims of favoritism, but pointed out the broadcast covered Hurts’ early exit “at length.”
“If you manage to score 33 points, force 5 takeaways and have the best defense in the NFL, then everyone should recognize just how good Jayden Daniels was today,” Olsen wrote.
Olsen also responded to a clip of an Eagles’ fan going ballistic following the game to Barstool Sports owner Dave Portnoy and former ESPN announcer and ex-head coach John Gruden.
“They lose for the first time in months after giving up 36 points and we didn’t make enough excuses for them,” Olsen wrote of the Eagles and their fans.
Olsen, who was replaced in Fox’s No. 1 booth this season by Tom Brady, has a quick turnaround for his next game. He’ll be calling Baltimore Ravens vs. Houston Texans on Netflix on Christmas Day alongside Noah Eagle.
No replacement yet for Howard Eskin on WIP’s Eagles broadcast
Eagles fans listening to Sunday’s Commanders game on the radio didn’t hear Howard Eskin’s voice during the broadcast.
Eskin, 94.1 WIP’s longtime sideline reporter, announced his abrupt departure from the station on Friday. Eskin simply said he was “moving on” after 38 years, but didn’t give further explanation for his sudden exit. Neither did parent company Audacy, which issued a short statement noting Eskin and WIP “have parted ways,”
Instead of replacing Eskin, WIP decided to go without a sideline reporter during Sunday’s broadcast of Eagles-Commanders, which featured longtime announcers Merrill Reese and Mike Quick.
It’s unclear if WIP will go without a sideline reporter for the rest of the season.
As for Eskin’s Saturday morning show, it’s unclear if anyone will replace him — WIP ran a “best of” show in its place last weekend.
While he wasn’t at the game Sunday, Eskin remained busy during the game, posting clips of postgame interviews recorded from an undisclosed location.