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Troy Aikman is a well-respected NFL color commentator, and his partnership with play-by-play announcer Joe Buck is regarded as one of the best duos in all of sports.
But during Monday Night Football between the Bears and Commanders on ABC, Chicago fans were unhappy with the way Aikman called their win over the Commanders. And they expressed their frustration with the NFL Hall of Famer on social media.
Aikman didn’t hold back in his critique of Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, calling out several of his “late” throws while using “luck” to describe some of Williams’s and the Bears’ positive plays. That included a fourth-quarter touchdown from running back D’Andre Swift, which fueled Chicago’s comeback.
However, Bears fans weren’t the only ones to acknowledge the broadcast. Chicago head coach Ben Johnson addressed the commentary on two separate occasions Tuesday.
“It sounded like from that game the other day, a few people weren’t particularly pleased with how we’re winning right now,” Johnson said on ESPN Chicago radio. Johnson said he “heard some of the commentary” while his kids were watching a replay of the second half of the game before they went to school.
Later in the day, Johnson was asked during a press conference by Chicago Sun-Times reporter Patrick Finley about whether the tone of the commentary bothered him.
“Maybe I just had it on mute,” Johnson joked before clarifying his previous statement. “Listen, you want respect in this league, you got to go earn it. That’s where we’re at right now: We need to go earn that respect from not only the rest of the teams in the NFL, but everybody.”
Williams also jabbed at the MNF broadcast, posting a photo carousel on his Instagram on Tuesday evening with a caption that included Aikman’s initials.
“‘It was lucky’ -TA,” the caption read, in part.
In his media availability Wednesday, Williams said he was just “messing around” when making his post and said he “couldn’t care less” about the comments. He added that he and Aikman were not able to speak before the MNF game for the usual production meeting that starting quarterbacks have with the broadcast team.
Stephen A. Backs Aikman
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith defended his colleague Wednesday on First Take following the comments.
“You’re talking about a guy in Troy Aikman who is a three-time Super Bowl champion, smart as a whip, [and has] incredible integrity. Anybody in the world of football who has a problem with him talking about a quarterback should really, really check themselves,” Smith said.
Smith added that one of his “proudest moments” as a member of ESPN was when the company signed Aikman and partner Joe Buck for its football coverage in 2022. Front Office Sports reported that Aikman is receiving $18 million a year from ESPN.
