FOX Sports recently announced that veteran broadcaster Mark Schlereth and play-by-play announcer Chris Myers will call the upcoming game between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Miami Dolphins. However, before the broadcast team could even travel to the stadium, a die-hard Raiders fan felt the urgent need to demand an important clarification from Schlereth.
“serious question – is it just embedded in you so deep to not just call raider games in an unbiased way?” a fan, Philip Nugent, on X tagged Schlereth while replying to a post highlighting the ESPN broadcaster’s next assignment. “We get the broncos history but damn, it’s been a long ass time, how about a normally commentated game for once?”
“Serious question… What would be unbiased in your mind?” the former Broncos’ guard replied. “See I think the problem that you have is I am unbiased and you hate it. would like me to glaze your team which I refused to do. I’m always gonna be honest good or bad!”
The accusation stems from the fact that Schlereth spent six seasons with the Denver Broncos before hanging up his cleats in 2000. He’s also backing a team that is one of the Raiders’ fiercest rivals; during the 70s, they were the most competitive in their divisions. Schlereth’s time with the Broncos was highlighted by two back-to-back Super Bowl wins, at a time when the Raiders dominated their rivalry.
The Raiders lead the series 73-58-2. The 2000s and 2010s were in the Broncos’ favor. But this decade, the team is trying to retake the baton from Las Vegas, who were on a winning streak against Denver. The franchise’s current stint is perhaps its most potent, headlined by head coach Sean Payton, quarterback Bo Nix, and others. Schlereth hasn’t been shy of his support for the team, even though Payton has handed over play-calling duties to Davis Webb this year.
“This Broncos team, depth-wise, I think arguably is the best team in football,” he said on The Rich Eisen Show.
Of course, this isn’t the first time fans accused Schlereth of bias. Earlier in 2023, during a game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Commanders, some fans seemed unhappy with Schlereth’s analysis. And they slammed the former Bronco online for it. But Schlereth had a response ready.
“I played enough against Philadelphia. I’ve been around Philadelphia enough. I’ve done enough stuff over the years both with ESPN and now with FOX with Philadelphia fans,” Schlereth previously said on the Stinkin’ Truth Podcast, after the Eagles fans accused him of being biased. “So no, I am not at all rattled. As a matter of fact, I like it. I like the hate.
“If what you say to me is ‘The broadcast was horrendous. You’re awful. It’s too X’s and O’s. Plus you were so biased,’ you didn’t hear the game you wanted to hear. I don’t get paid to talk about the game you want to hear. I get paid to cover the game in front of me.”
Schlereth did say in the broadcast before signing off, “I appreciate you guys. I appreciate your passion. Settle down. Your Eagles are a damn good football team, but they are going through a gauntlet right now. We’re gonna find out about these Eagles.”
However, Schlereth has been criticized as an announcer, regardless of which team he supports or hates. According to an Awful Announcing poll, the pairing of Chris Myers and Schlereth graded the worst last season, with an average score of 1.41 out of 4. They had the most F grades (198) in the survey.
For former players turned broadcasters, completely erasing a lifetime of bitter divisional rivalries in the eyes of fans is nearly impossible. While Raider Nation might never fully embrace a Broncos legend calling their games, Schlereth has made it abundantly clear that he plans to keep delivering his blunt, unapologetic truth.