Former NFL quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is still kind of new at this NFL announcing gig, only in his second season as an analyst with Amazon Prime’s Thursday Night Football.
But while Fitzpatrick admitted last year he worried that he might have trouble being critical of players and coaches, he showed Thursday night he’s developed into Pro Bowl form in that regard. That came with tough comments on former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores.
During a discussion on New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones and his struggles, Fitzpatrick drew a parallel between Jones and Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Tagovailoa has flourished under second-year coach Mike McDaniel (it definitely didn’t hurt to add speedster Tyreek Hill to the offense in 2022). But Tagovailoa, a first-round pick in 2020, struggled early in his Miami career under Flores.
Fitzpatrick, a teammate of Tagovailoa’s in 2020, pointed the finger directly at Flores for those problems.
“[Mac Jones] is definitely broken, mentally, emotionally — he’s broken,” Fitzpatrick said. “You know, I look to a few similar examples of first-round quarterbacks that have gone through the struggles. … Tua Tagovailoa, who I was with, Brian Flores (using the) same New England way, he was broken for Brian Flores.
“The way that he treated him, the way that he coached him. And what happens? Mike McDaniel comes in, he restores his confidence, he gets it back and he’s now an MVP candidate.”
So Fitzpatrick is getting good at throwing jabs when necessary — even if that means calling out a fellow TNF analyst. When Richard Sherman lavishly praised the Seattle Seahawks defense after giving up 20 first-half points to the Dallas Cowboys in their TNF game Nov. 30, Fitzpatrick noted, “I know you’re excited. But Dallas still hasn’t punted.”
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.