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Bomani Jones: Alejandro Villanueva Will Be A Star In Pittsburgh Sports Talk

“During a virtual media sessios, Alejandro Villanueva said that he thought it would be more fun to block in Baltimore, where the team relies on a more run-centered offense.”

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Bomani Jones

ESPN’s Bomani Jones has never been shy about calling out ignorant or just plain lazy commentary. On Wednesday, he pointed to Baltimore’s newest offensive lineman and said that if he can’t be more creative in his criticism of former teammates, he may just be the next big thing in talk radio in the Steel City.

During a virtual media sessios, Alejandro Villanueva said that he thought it would be more fun to block in Baltimore, where the team relies on a more run-centered offense.

“I’m assuming it’s not as fun for the wide receivers,” he said. “They’re not making the catches. They’re making the TikToks and they’re having fun on their social media.”

The line was a not-so-subtle shot at former teammate Juju Smith-Schuster, who made news by posting videos of himself dancing on opponents’ midfield logos before away games.

Jones said the commentary was lazy and well-worn territory.

https://twitter.com/bomani_jones/status/1390039219540795394?s=21

At least one Pittsburgh radio personality strongly disagreed. Mark Madden called Bomani Jones “a less talented, less paid version of Jemele Hill” during his afternoon show on 105.9 the X. He added that he has muted Jones on Twitter.

Plenty of listeners pointed out to Madden that Jones has a history of Alejandro Villanueva. When the entire NFL took a knee in protest of then-President Donald Trump calling players that kneel during the anthem “sons of bitches,” the Steelers elected to stay in the locker room during the anthem. Villanueva, who served in the Army Rangers and played football at West Point said the anthem meant too much to him to miss it. He chose to stand in the tunnel, where he could be seen by television cameras. 

Bomani Jones criticized the move as rehearsed and whether intentional or not, an excuse for fans to shame Villanueva’s teammates.

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Fred Toucher: Paul Finebaum Deserves Credit For Building His Empire

While joking about callers into Finebaum’s program, the Boston sports radio host did give the longtime college football voice props.

Jordan Bondurant

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Paul Finebaum
Courtesy: Joe Faraoni, ESPN Images

Some radio shows have just developed an audience that is completely unique to the talent and their personality. Boston host Fred Toucher said Tuesday that Paul Finebaum is a prime example of having that unique audience.

Toucher on his 98.5 The Sports Hub show has had a long-running bit highlighting some of the best calls from Finebaum’s SEC Network and nationally-syndicated radio show.

Toucher and co-host Jon Wallach listened to one caller from The Paul Finebaum Show Monday show, and Fred joked that when the callers start getting nonsensical with their deep southern accents, the entertainment factor is in not understanding what is being said half the time.

“Paul Finebaum’s show is so incestuous, that you just don’t even have to name what you’re talking about. You don’t even have to say what the hell’s going on,” Toucher said.

“It’s spoken in code, because every normal listener understands what it is you’re saying,” Wallach responded.

Toucher and Wallach did give Finebaum his flowers for being one of the preeminent voices in college sports.

“He has the best job in talk radio in this country,” Wallach said. “He has a built-in stable of listeners, he has built-in subject matter he can always go back to. And I don’t know about the ratings nationwide, but the ratings in the south are phenomenal.”

Fred said you had to tip your cap to Finebaum where it’s due.

“Give him a lot of credit for building it,” he said. “Cause now it’s you built this empire and now you can watch it flourish.”

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Jason Benetti: White Sox Exit Had More To Do With the Tigers Interest in All I Do

“Benetti addressed his exit from the Chicago White Sox during a lengthy conversation with Parkins and Spiegel on 670 The Score.”

Jordan Bondurant

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Last month it was announced that longtime Chicago White Sox announcer Jason Benetti would become the new TV play-by-play voice of the Detroit Tigers.

Benetti on Parkins & Spiegel on Tuesday said the decision to leave his post in Chicago after eight seasons was not an easy one.

“The Tigers asked me a lot of questions about who I am, what I value, and what I care about in a telecast,” Benetti said. “And what I care about in a team and a team that I want to be on with a crew.”

“White Sox fans have done a lot for me in a lot of ways. But the Tigers and their aim to want to have the entire range in a telecast, and the way they’re building, was so appealing to me,” he later added. “And it all comes down to the idea of The Voice, where somebody hears you. And they had eight years of stuff that they watched. It all was out there, the entirety of what I do, and they said, ‘We want that.’ That is appealing to me and will be endlessly for my entire life.”

Jason Benetti was asked if he had ever given thought to the idea of being a career-long White Sox broadcaster, but Benetti said staying in one place for 40 years just isn’t who he is. When he felt like he can’t or shouldn’t leave his hometown team, that was when he knew he had to take the Tigers up on their offer.

“I know what it’s like to be comfortable. I know what it’s like to be in one place,” he said. “And part of what makes me, me, is I don’t like when other people tell me you can’t. But I really hate when my own mind tells me I can’t. Because sometimes in the past I’ve listened.”

“That’s when I really have to push back on myself,” he added.

Jason Benetti mentioned that there were little things that he wasn’t such a fan of when it came to working with the White Sox, things like eating on camera or singing, but you can’t exactly pinpoint one specific thing as the reason why he decided to move to Detroit.

“I’m just saying all this to tell you all that it is super complicated and there were a ton of factors,” he said. “But in the end, it really is a thing that I felt like I was pulled to do.”

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Joe Benigno: No Ground Rules in Texting Jets Head Coach

“What else do you want me to say? There’s nothing else I can say.”

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Joe Benigno

With a losing streak that has reached five consecutive games and questions surrounding the team, the New York Jets endured several rounds of negative publicity on Monday. A report from Dianna Russini of The Athletic stated that Wilson was reluctant to reassume the starting quarterback responsibilities, while former WFAN host Joe Benigno revealed that head coach Robert Saleh told him in a text message that he does not like Wilson.

While Saleh addressed the first matter in a press conference yesterday and gave a vote of confidence to his quarterback, there has been several discussions surrounding what Benigno revealed Monday on WFAN. Benigno recognized that he misinterpreted what Saleh said and appeared on Boomer & Gio on Tuesday morning to clear the air. Rather than not caring for his quarterback, Joe Benigno revealed that Saleh was incredulous to the fact that he wanted Wilson to start again after suggesting to him for weeks that he should be benched. The matter was a topic of discussion to open Tuesday’s edition of the show, and Benigno called in to try and defend his actions.

“Well look, I wouldn’t call [it] me hammering him,” Joe Benigno said. “You think I’m sitting there hammering him; is that what I’m doing?”

Benigno did not seem to grasp an understanding of what he did to Saleh, who morning show co-host Gregg Giannotti surmises received a deluge of messages and feedback about the purported narrative. Giannotti presented a hypothetical situation to Benigno where he promulgated information that Benigno did not like his co-host Evan Roberts based on what he was told by him. After asking Benigno whether or not he would consider the action by Giannotti to be an example of throwing him under the bus, he concurred that it would constitute such a classification.

“Okay, well that’s what you did to Rob Saleh yesterday!,” Giannotti replied. “That’s my point.”

“I defended myself in the way that I have to,” Joe Benigno said back. “What else do you want me  to say? I shouldn’t have done it.”

Benigno has fostered a relationship with Saleh where they text back-and-forth about the team, but there have not been ground rules established in their interactions. After Giannotti inquired pertaining to whether or not certain things were off-the-record, he was surprised to learn that there were no set limitations about what to and not to disseminate. This caused him not to want to know whether or not Benigno heard from Saleh himself yesterday after the reaction it elicited.

Morning show co-host Boomer Esiason continued the discussion by asking Benigno how the owner of the Jets would feel if someone revealed information that was obtained through a text message that was willingly sent by the head coach. He also averred that Saleh would likely have plenty of time to text with Benigno in the future, surmising that he would be losing his job after the team’s performance this season. Benigno still did not understand how he harmed the reputation of the head coach, causing Giannotti to recapitulate what he had explained earlier.

“The fact that he wants to continue texting you about the team after this makes him look like a stone-cold moron,” Giannotti said, preceding his remarks by explaining that he intended to demonstrate no disrespect to Benigno. “If he didn’t learn his lesson this time around and he’s still going to go back and talk to you about the team, then he shouldn’t be the head coach because that is idiotic. I can’t even imagine the stuff that he heard yesterday from people.”

Although Benigno is not sure if Saleh will still text him about the team, the morning show co-hosts seemed to feel that he reached an understanding about the implications and consequences of his actions. After the call concluded, Esiason inferred that Benigno was feeling “sick to his stomach” about what he did on the air.

“Alright, well look,” Benigno said. “I guess only time will tell, alright. What else do you want me to say? There’s nothing else I can say. Obviously I made a mistake here; something I shouldn’t have done; totally misinterpreted it; and what can I do about it now – not much.”

“What you did actually,” Giannotti answered. “I think what you can do about it now is what you did, which is understand what happened; that’s all. At least we understand that you understand now, so now we can move on with an understanding.”

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