We are finishing 2011 with a literal bang!  AA has always been about giving fans a voice in who or what they give a thumbs up or down to for covering sports.  For the last week, our readers have voted on our year end Pyrotechnics Awards for the best and worst in sports media.  After four days of voting in eight categories, we can now reveal your choices for the winners!  Without further adieu, the envelope please...

Wost Play By Play Person Of 2011

5. Dick Stockton - 6.35%
4. Hawk Harrelson - 8.19% 
3. Pam Ward - 15.87%
2. Joe Buck - 19.26%

WINNER: Chris Berman - 19.56%

While most associate Berman's schtick with the studio and NFL Countdown, he still makes play by play appearances for the leader calling various baseball games, the Home Run Derby, and US Open golf coverage.  In fact, it was Berman who struggled with the concept of a walkoff win earlier this year.  To beat out Joe Buck and Pam Ward is certainly quite the acheivement for a rumblin, bumblin, stumblin part timer.

Best Play By Play Person Of 2011

5. Ian Darke - 8.8%
4. Vin Scully - 10.21%
3. Al Michaels - 10.28%
2. Mike Emrick - 15.01%

WINNER: Gus Johnson - 22.04%

It should come as no surprise that the blogosphere's favorite announcer takes home another award from AA readers.  You voted him as the best announcer of 2010 last year, and this year he takes home the top play by play prize.  What better way to commemorate Gus' last year of being the voice for March Madness and his CBS -> Fox switch.  I actually thought on the basis of 2011 alone, Dan Shulman (who finished 6th) deserved the award for the great work he did across a number of platforms.  Namely, relating the death of Osama Bin Laden to an audience of millions like a true pro.

Ken Rosenthal published a report yesterday mentioning that ESPN columnist and occasional on-air personality Keith Law had interviewed to become the scouting director for the Houston Astros under new GM Jeff Luhnow, the former scouting director for the St Louis Cardinals.

Law has stated in the past that if he were to take a front office job and leave the media world, he'd like to enter a situation where the organization was completely starting over. With Luhnow's entrance in Houston, as well as new owner Jim Crane's purchase of the team and the shift to the AL West, this seems to be an ideal situation for Law.

If Law is indeed offered the job, his blend of sabermetric and scouting knowledge would be beneficial to a Houston organization that has suffered through years of awful draft classes with former GM Ed Wade, enabled by former owner Drayton McClane's refusal to go over slot on draft choices.  Houston's potential gain would be ESPN's loss.

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Jack Edwards is insane. Luckily for all of us, he's that lovable brand of crazy that we can all enjoy safely at home via the spectacular announcing clips he so often gives us. We appreciated Edwards sharing his gift with us so much that we even compiled a top thirteen list of our favorite Edwards moments. After marinating in that list for a while, it should come to no surprise to anyone that he once again upped the crazy in his latest and greatest demented clip where he creates his own lyrics to the "12 Days of Christmas" with some of his fondest Bruins memories.

Yep, that just happened. I enjoy imagining the reaction of the Bruins video guy when he was informed that Jack Edwards had rewritten the "12 Days of Christmas" and it was his job to find clips that corresponded with each line of Edwards' maniacal singing.  Sure, it was a nice story that the Bruins won their first Stanley Cup Championship since the 70's last season, but I think the greater story from that season is the fact that Jack Edwards now walks around with a Stanley Cup Championship ring on his finger.

H/T The Nosebleeds

For the final day of voting for our 2011 Pyrotechnics Awards for the best and worst in sports media, we have polls for the best and worst sports show of 2011.  Again, these are some wide ranging categories with a diversity of shows on offer in each poll.  Anything from documentaries, to studio shows, to debate shows and even radio on television are included in the nominees.  Voting for all of our polls remain open until late tonight, so make sure you check out the links below if you haven't voted yet, and then we'll reveal all the winners tomorrow!  Here are your nominees...

Vote For Best Sports Show

Vote For Worst Sports Show

Other Categories...

Best & Worst Play by Play
Best & Worst Game Analyst
Best & Worst Studio Personality

See you on Friday with all the winners! 

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Come back here, you're not going to the Pro Bowl

It's the final week of the NFL season before playoffs. Playoff scenarios for the AFC and NFC can be found after the jump. Your broadcast maps can be found here, via The 506. Happy New Year!

Sunday, New Year's Day!

Carolina Panthers @ New Orleans Saints (FOX 1PM) Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Pam Oliver
Chicago Bears @ Minnesota Vikings (FOX 1PM) Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston, Tony Siragusa
Detroit Lions @ Green Bay Packers (FOX 1PM) Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick, Laura Okmin
San Francisco 49ers @ St. Louis Rams (FOX 1PM) Chris Myers, Tim Ryan
Washington Redskins @ Philadelphia Eagles (FOX 1PM) Ron Pitts, Charles Davis

New York Jets @ Miami Dolphins (CBS 1PM) Greg Gumbel, Dan Dierdorf
Buffalo Bills @ New England Patriots (CBS 1PM) Don Criqui, Randy Cross
Tennessee Titans @ Houston Texans (CBS 1PM) Bill Macatee, Steve Tasker
Indianapolis Colts @ Jacksonville Jaguars (CBS 1PM) Spero Dedes, Steve Beurelein

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Atlanta Falcons (FOX 4:15PM) Dick Stockton, John Lynch
Seattle Seahawks @ Arizona Cardinals (FOX 4:15PM) Sam Rosen, Chad Pennington

Kansas City Chiefs @ Denver Broncos (CBS 4:15PM) Jim Nantz, Phil Simms
Baltimore Ravens @ Cincinnati Bengals (CBS 4:15PM) Ian Eagle, Dan Fouts
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cleveland Browns (CBS 4:15PM) Kevin Harlan, Solomon Wilcots
San Diego Chargers @ Oakland Raiders (CBS 4:15PM) Marv Albert, Rich Gannon

Dallas Cowboys @ New York Giants (NBC 8:20PM) Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya

H/T Sammy!

As was the case last week, it's amazing that some of the more infamous names in our list are making their first appearance in the Dickies countdown this season.  It's the first winning quotes for Chris Myers, Joe Theismann, and Michael Irvin.  And can you believe Tony Siragusa only had one point coming into this week?  Heading into the final week though, it looks like Dick Stockton is in pole position for the Dickies crown.  The envelope, please...

T8) "Good start for Ponder and the Vikings offense." - Chris Myers. The start - 2 possesions, 1 first down, 20 yards. (via ccfMRF)

T8) "When his elbow hits, he's down, right?" - Tony Siragusa

T8) "Shaun Sneezam with his second field goal of the day..." - Dick Stockton (via acsteelersfan)

7) "Tony Romo needs to be able to grip the ball with 5 hands" - Michael Irvin (via 4CourtJesters)

6) "They need a 2 point conversion" - Thom Brennaman with the Cardinals trailing by seven. (via kamuifan)

5) "The tie is broken!" - Ron Pitts on an Akers FG. Seattle was winning 17-16 at the time. (via SSReporters)

4) "A penalty flag is thrown. No flag is down on the field." - Joe Buck (via bloggerjustinf)

3) "Look at Tony Tebow right here." - Joe Theismann (via sctvman)

2) "He got injured pulling out" - Phil Simms (via ving323)

1) "This Jets crowd is really in favor of the Jets today" - Tony Siragusa (via sctvman)

Week 16 Top 5 -

1) Dick Stockton 89 pts

2) Phil Simms 62.5 pts

3) Brian Billick 55 pts

4) Jon Gruden 47 pts

5) Chris Berman 39 pts

Others receiving votes - Joe Buck 34 pts, Mike Tirico 28 pts, Al Michaels 15.5, Cris Collinsworth 14 pts, Dave Lapham 14 pts, Jim Mora 14 pts, Tony Siragusa 13 pts, Thom Brennaman 13 pts, Dan Dierdorf 13 pts, Rich Gannon 12 pts, Terry Bradshaw 10 pts, Scott Hanson 10 pts, Jim Nantz 10, Deion Sanders 10, Dan Fouts 8.5 pts, Bob Griese 8.5 pts, Troy Aikman 8 pts, Curt Menefee 8 pts, Joe Theismann 8 pts, Dan Patrick 7 pts, Marv Albert 7 pts, Mike Mayock 6 pts, Ron Pitts 6 pts, Daryl Johnston 5 pts, Marcellus Wiley 5 pts, Tim Ryan 5 pts, Bob Costas 4 pts, Michael Irvin 4 pts, Warren Moon 3 pts, Keyshawn Johnson 3 pts, Chad Pennington 2 pts, Chris Myers 2 pts, Ron Jaworski 1 pt, Rodney Harrison 1 pt.

You can check out the Week 17 NFL announcing schedule later this afternoon.

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A month ago, NFL on Fox rules analyst Mike Pereira let the world know his feelings on ESPN NFL analyst Jon Gruden.  Pereira tweeted that he turned the mute button on whenever Gruden was speaking.  For last week's Monday night game in New Orleans, Pereira must have had Gruden briefly unmuted.  The popular rules czar launched into a blistering rant against Chuckie in a Fox Sports column Thursday night over comments made by Gruden Monday night.  Here's Pereira dropping the gloves, even using an ESPN staple to launch his opening salvo...

C’mon man!

I’m talking to ESPN announcer and former coach Jon Gruden, because I need to set the record straight.

I am not a fan of Gruden’s. Not today, not yesterday, not when I worked for the NFL and not when I was working on the field as a side judge. He was a loudmouth as a coach who constantly disrespected officials and he is a blowhard in the broadcast booth who spouts off when he doesn’t know what he is talking about.

I respect his knowledge about the X’s and O’s when it comes to coaching and playing the game of football, but I have very little respect for him when it comes to officiating and his knowledge of the rules.

The sinister side of me loves high profile media figures being unafraid to call out one another and willing to play the feud.  Given Pereira's comments and his previous sentiments regarding Gruden, there must be some heated past history between Gruden and Pereira from Pereira's days as an official himself and as the NFL's VP of Officiating.  However, as he is with most replay reviews and rules questions, Pereira is right on the money with his article.  The crux of Pereira's attack on Gruden was two hits by defensive players in the second quarter.  

The first was by Atlanta's Curtis Lofton for a helmet to helmet hit on Saints receiver Marques Colston.  

Even though Lofton's hit was clearly helmet to helmet, Gruden didn't believe a flag should be thrown.  Perhaps he was thrown off by the "defenseless receiver language" from referee Jeff Triplette, but that's still no excuse for Gruden.  Colston is hit helmet to helmet right as he comes down from the air.  As Pereira explains, it is an obvious flag.  In fairness, Ron Jaworski also criticizes the call by the officials.  To tell the truth though, how many NFL announcers (and fans) actually know the rules regarding defenseless receivers and what is and isn't a penalty?  That's why Pereira has been such a valuable asset for Fox to explain these decisions.  But it's our second clip that shows where Gruden and the rest of the ESPN booth is out of bounds...

In last night's Holiday Bowl, Texas defeated Cal 21-10 in a game that lacked any sort of real excitement whatsoever.  That's what the Holiday Bowl and all these other hideously boring early bowls get for not inviting a MAC team.  The highlight of the night may have actually come from the booth though, and I'm not just talking about Craig James' absence alongside Rece Davis and Jesse Palmer.  No, I'm talking about Davis' call of a Cody Johnson 4 yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter for the Longhorns.  

As Johnson runs up the middle for the score, Davis boldly proclaims the Cal defense is getting "a face full of Johnson."  That's... errr... umm... an interesting choice of words to say the least.

There are so many directions to go here, and unfortunately, it seems the telecast went on through its trance as if nothing had happened.  Rece is a smart guy, so he had to know what he was saying.  Next time, perhaps he can add on some more descriptives to really drive the message home.  Talking about "good penetration" would be fitting.  "Exploding all over the defense" might work too.  Anything with "banging" or "squirting" or "holes" is sure to draw even more juvenile giggles from around the country (I plead guilty as well).  Nevertheless, it's good to see ESPN announcers get more creative in this arena instead of something more blunt and straightforward...

(h/t radiofreeblake)

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This Sunday, the Cincinnati Bengals will play host to the Baltimore Ravens in a “win and you're in the playoffs” game. With such high stakes on the line, a casual fan in any other market would expect a sure sell-out. But this week the Bengals organization held a “Buy One-Get One” sale for season ticket holders to avoid another blackout of the game locally. This begs the question - are league wide ticket sales issues to blame on the fans or an archaic blackout policy?

The ticket drive worked and the Bengals announced yesterday they avoided what could have been their seventh blackout of their eight home games this year. Even though the Ravens game will be shown locally, Bengals fans have had to suffer through six home blackouts for a team on the verge of making the playoffs. They rank last in leaguewide attendance at just over 42,000 fans a game and fill Paul Brown Stadium to only 72% capacity, also last in the NFL. The Bengals' issues have brought about an interesting debate on whether or not the NFL blackout policy that has been in place since 1973 should be changed.

Sherrod Brown, a Senator from Ohio, has stepped into the ring to take the blame away from the Cincy fans and put it squarely on the NFL as related in USA Today:

“The NFL's blackout policy is unnecessary. The NFL is poised to earn record profits while the Cincinnati taxpayers who built the stadium will be watching reruns rather than touchdown runs. The rule is an outdated relic that doesn't serve the NFL or the fan."

But the NFL stuck back hard in their reply stating “The blackout policy is very important in supporting NFL stadiums and the ability of NFL clubs to sell tickets; keeping our games attractive as television programming with large crowds; and ensuring that we can continue to keep our games on free TV. Playing in full stadiums with thousands of fans is an important part of what makes NFL football an exciting and special entertainment event, both live and on television. We have a limited number of games and do not want to erode the incentive to buy tickets. Every market receives more than 100 NFL games on free TV every year, regardless of the blackout policy.”

Before the Blackout Rule of 1973 was in place, ALL local games were blacked out to encourage fans to attend the games live. And since the league has only had 16 games blacked out this year (through Week 16) compared to last year’s 26 total games blacked out, it makes sense that the league would stick to their guns on this policy.

So if Cincy has seen most of the blackouts this season, are the fans to blame? Or the ownership? Or a combination of numerous issues?

NBA fans for the most part have embraced TNT's more casual and, for the lack of a better word, goofy coverage of the NBA. Rather than shaping Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley into more polished and vanilla analysts, TNT has developed their studio coverage to center around their personalities and chemistry. It has worked very well in the past but many were skeptical about how Shaq's addition to the fold would alter the breezy chemistry the group has developed.

As evidenced below, early indications are that Shaq and the rest of the TNT studio team mesh quite nicely, as Shaq forays into some hijinks aimed at Barkley in the "Who He Play For?" segment: 

If anything, the only real question mark is if Ernie Johnson can continue to referee/navigate Smith, Shaq, and Barkley. Those guys are all great television personalities who entertain and have unique commentary, but Johnson is the studio floor general of the group and has to ensure some semblance of timing, seriousness, and analysis. That said, is it a stretch to say that outside of College Gameday, the TNT studio group is the most entertaining group in all of sports?

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