A Fox Sports spokesperson said that play-by-play announcer Mike Goldberg "will not call any more NFL games for the network this year" after he "sparred with Twitter users who were critical of his broadcasting" during last week's Lions-Vikings game, according to Richard Deitsch of SI.com. The exchanges on Twitter included "some curses from Goldberg to his detractors." The spokesperson said that he "was scheduled only to do the Lions-Vikings and Vikings-Bills." Deitsch wrote if Goldberg, whose primary job is working as a UFC commentator, "had more of a track record with Fox executives, it's likely he would have faced only internal discipline." But networks "do not like to be embarrassed by any employee, especially ones that do not have a lot of juice built up with management." Thus, his "first NFL assignment could also be his last for Fox -- at least this season" (SI.com, 10/14). In Minneapolis, Christopher Miller noted Goldberg is a former play-by-play man for the Wild. Meanwhile, Brendon Ayanbadejo, who worked with Goldberg for Lions-Vikings, "remains the analyst" for Vikings-Bills, despite the fact that he "was certainly no wordsmith at Sunday’s game" (STARTRIBUNE.com, 10/14). AWFUL ANNOUNCING's Matt Yoder noted Fox is "replacing Goldberg with veteran announcer Tim Brando, who they just signed to call college football games for the network" (AWFULANNOUNCING.com, 10/14).
