Image via: Fox Sports/Screenshot
Last week, one small, three-letter word may have ended Cincinnati Reds and NFL broadcaster Thom Brennaman's remarkably successful career.
Brennaman, believing his microphone was turned off in the seventh inning of the first game of a doubleheader between the Reds and Kansas City Royals, used a homophobic slur to describe a city. We don't know, and it doesn't matter, which city he was talking about. The comment was heard live and people instantly condemned Brennaman on social media.
Brennanman knew immediately that his slur went out over the air, but didn't get around to apologizing until the fifth inning of the second game. And that's when Brennaman made a bad situation much, much worse.
He began, "I made a comment earlier tonight that I guess went out over the air that I am deeply ashamed of."
No, you aren't guessing it was heard over the air, You know it did.
"If I have hurt anyone out there, I can't tell you how much I say from the bottom of my heart, I am very, very sorry."
No, it's not "if." You did. The word "if" doesn't belong in an apology.
And in the middle of his apology, he stopped to announce that a Cincinnati player hit a home run to give the Reds a four-run lead. He concluded, "I don't know if I'm going to be putting on this headset again."
That part he got right. No one knows where Brennaman goes from here. Can he recover his career? Possibly. We live in a country of forgiveness. In 1972, Jane Fonda visited North Vietnam and posed on an anti-aircraft gun pointed at U.S. military planes. She came back to the U.S., put out exercise videos and won an Academy Award. For many, especially in Hollywood and workout gyms, "Hanoi Jane" became America's sweetheart. Beatle John Lennon once said, "We're more popular than Jesus." In the '60s, that comment raised a ruckus and there were public burnings of Beatles records. Now Lennon is practically a saint.
Brennaman left the broadcast booth in the fifth inning of the second game and a different Reds announcer took his place. The next day, Brennanman issued a longer apology in a Cincinnati newspaper, in which he claimed, "I had no idea it (the homophobic slur) was so rooted in hate and violence."
Really, you thought that word was embraced by the gay community and American culture in 2020?
By the time that newspaper hit the street, Brennaman was placed on indefinite suspension by the Reds, their local broadcast partner and Fox Sports.
In the blink of one small word, a successful 33-year career broadcasting Major League Baseball and National Football League games, the highest echelon of his profession, may have ended.
GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) released a statement calling Brennaman's apology "incredibly weak" and demanding action from the Cincinnati Reds, MLB and Fox Sports.
I asked two Houston broadcasting legends, "What happens next for Thom Brennaman?
"Thom Brennaman is a good friend and a great broadcaster, but he broke the cardinal rule of broadcasting. Always assume you are talking on a live microphone. His audio guy left his microphone live when he used the gay slur. Everyone heard it," said Bill Worrell, who's announced Houston sports for nearly a half-century.
"I was shocked he would say that, even in private, but he did, so he is gone. We live in a world now with no second chances. But I think he can get back in, maybe in several years."
Bill Brown, who broadcast Cincinnati baseball games from 1976 to 1982 before being hired to do play-by-play for the Astros, added, "I like Thom Brennaman's broadcasting. I've said things thinking they were not on the air. In those situations, we just have to take responsibility and ask for forgiveness.
"Maybe 20 or 30 years ago a broadcaster could apologize and keep his job. Not these days. I hope he gets another chance, but that would be somewhat surprising in today's world."
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Can Will Anderson and the Texans defense force Drake Maye into rookie mistakes? Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images.
The New England Patriots are turning things over to Drake Maye, and his first shot will come against the AFC South-leading Houston Texans.
The first-round draft pick is replacing Jacoby Brissett as the starter in the hopes that he can snap the Patriots’ four-game losing streak. But he’ll have to do it against one of the NFL's toughest defenses.
“There’s never a perfect time to make a change,” Patriots coach Jerod Mayo said this week after announcing the swap. “Every defense that we play ... they all have the ability to rush and get after the quarterback. So, I don’t think there’s ever a perfect time.”
But the Texans (4-1) will pose an especially difficult challenge for Maye and the makeshift New England (1-4) offensive line that has started five different combinations in five games. Houston pressures the quarterback more than any other team in the league – 42% of dropbacks, according to NFL NextGen stats.
“It’s probably going to be a little nervous at the beginning,” Maye said this week. “I think once we settle down, we have a chance to move the football and just have fun out there. ... That’s what this game is about: Don’t make it too big or the spotlight too big. Just go out there with those guys that we’ve been battling for three months since training camp, go out there and try to make some plays.”
After winning the opener and going to overtime in Week 2, the Patriots were blown out by the Jets and 49ers and lost 15-10 to Miami, another of the NFL’s worst teams. In all, Brissett has completed 79 of 135 passes for 696 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said there’s a challenge in facing an unknown such as Maye, who was 4 of 8 for 22 yards in mopup duty against the New York Jets in Week 3.
“What I’ve seen is a young, athletic quarterback who has a live arm, can move around really well in the pocket, can escape the pressures,” Ryans said. “Them, making that move, (they’re) looking for a spark for their offense, and he can provide it.”
Running game help
Houston’s running game could get a boost with the return of Dameon Pierce.
The third-year pro hasn’t played since injuring his hamstring in the season opener. But he has been practicing this week and Ryans said he expects him to play Sunday.
Pierce, who ran for 939 yards as a rookie in 2022, should improve a rushing attack which ranks 23rd in the NFL by averaging just 104.2 yards a game.
Stroud is excited to have Pierce back on the field.
“It is really big, I am very happy for DP,” he said. “He has worked really hard to come back.”
KPRC2's Aaron Wilson is reporting that Joe Mixon could return this week as well, he practiced on Thursday and Friday.
#Texans running back Joe Mixon practicing again Friday and is trending toward being available Sunday against Patriots. pic.twitter.com/dUsmfsamq0
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 11, 2024
Mixon has been out since injuring his ankle against the Bears in Week 2.
Special teams star
Houston kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn earned AFC special teams player of the week honors for the second time this season on Wednesday.
Fairbairn’s 59-yard field goal as time expired lifted the Texans to the victory over the Bills.
It was his eighth field goal this season of at least 50 yards, which is the most in NFL history through the first five games of a season. It’s also the most 50-yarders made in a season in franchise history.
“It’s comforting for everyone to know wherever we are, (Ka’imi) can make a play,” Ryans said.
Fairbairn loves being in those high-pressure situations.
“Whatever yardage it is, I really don’t care. I want that shot,” he said. “I think part of being good at this job is ... wanting that opportunity.”