San Francisco 49ers were upset with Al Michaels on Thursday night — for good reason.
Michaels was calling the Niners’ game against the New York Giants for “Thursday Night Football” on Amazon. Late in the first quarter, Amazon showed Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit in their broadcasting booth to talk some history about the two franchises. That’s when Michaels made his mistake.
“You think about the 49ers, this is a franchise that has won four Super Bowls. Bill Walsh won two, George Seifert won two, but (they have not won) since 1994. And the Giants also (have won) four Super Bowls. Two under Bill Parcells, two to Tom Coughlin,” Michaels said.
https://twitter.com/SFTaxCPA/status/1705021339252490420
What’s the problem? Michaels shorted the Niners and Bill Walsh by a Super Bowl.
The 49ers have won five Super Bowls, which is tied with the Dallas Cowboys for the second most. The Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers both have won six, while the Giants and Packers have both won four. That is a big difference.
The Niners were a total dynasty in the ’80s and won four Super Bowls that decade. They added another in 1994 with Steve Young at quarterback. Niners fans know that well. Michaels should know that too.
It’s one thing for Michaels to receive subjective criticism over the style of his calls. He can defend himself against that. But there is no excuse for getting the facts wrong, especially when you’re making a broadcasting talking point about it.
