After the NFL world watched the exciting finish to the Los Angeles Rams’ 34-31 win over the Carolina Panthers in an NFC Wild Card game on Fox Sports, they tuned in to Amazon Prime Video to watch the Green Bay Packers battle the Chicago Bears, with Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit calling the action.
However, many people were displeased with Herbstreit’s analysis during the first half.
What Was the NFL World Saying About Kirk Herbstreit?
Herbstreit has been active during ESPN’s coverage of the College Football Playoff, calling games with play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler. But tonight, he turned his attention to the Wild Card round game at Soldier Field.
Jared Smith of Fox Sports Radio expressed his displeasure over going from Fox Sports’ Joe Davis and Greg Olsen on the Rams-Panthers game to the late one. Smith posted on X, “Going from Joe Davis and Greg Olsen on the call to Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit is the NFL quarterback equivalent of Patrick Mahomes to Chris Oladokun”.
Going from Joe Davis and Greg Olsen on the call to Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit is the NFL quarterback equivalent of Patrick Mahomes to Chris Oladokun
— Jared Smith (@jaredsmithbets) January 11, 2026
Chuck Bass of PlayerProfiler shared an image of Herbstreit from a “Thursday Night Football” telecast with a funny remark:
Kirk Herbstreit when 8 year NFL veteran DJ Moore makes a catch:
“He used to run this route all the time back at Maryland” pic.twitter.com/x07rSIKlbL
— Chuck Bass (@ChuckFBass) January 11, 2026
Derek Brown, who covers the NFL and NFL Draft for FantasyPros, wrote on X, “Herbstreit and I must be watching different versions of Caleb Williams atm (at the moment).”
Samer Ali, a host of “The Loose Cannons Podcast,” had some thoughts, too. Ali wrote, “Kirk Herbstreit says the exact same 20 phrases in every single college and NFL game he announces. Just like a f**king video game.”
Midway through the second quarter, the Packers were up 14-3 while Herbstreit called the action. Michaels, in fact, recently re-upped for another season as Amazon Prime’s top NFL announcer.
While the NFL world watches this game roll along, there will probably be more voices sharing their disdain over hearing Herbstreit offer his opinions, as there’s still a full half of this NFC Wild Card game left.
