Traina Thoughts: Troy Aikman Says He Got a Couple of Phone Calls From FOX Higher-Ups After Ripping Doug Gottlieb on Twitter

Troy Aikman reveals how FOX higher-ups handled his epic tweet torching colleague Doug Gottlieb.
Cindy Ord/Getty Images

1. Troy Aikman, who has never listened to a podcast, appeared on the latest episode of the SI Media Podcast and said a lot.

In addition to saying that the NFL's problem with referees and penalties is "nauseating," FOX's No. 1 NFL analyst revealed what happened after he sent his famous tweet about colleague Doug Gottlieb and his ridiculous hot take on Andrew Luck's retirement.

Aikman, who is not one to cause a stir on Twitter, told me he "received a couple of phone calls from some of my bosses." After explaining that he felt Gottlieb's comments "just really struck a nerve with me for several reasons" and that "Doug's comments were out of line," Aikman explained what happened with FOX higher-ups.

"I just try to be honest and I don't go looking to jump in the fray, by any means, but if I have an opinion on something and feel strongly about something, then I'll say it and whatever the consequences of that are, they are. I have great bosses and they were great in how they handled it, not because they handled it the way I wanted them to handle it. I think they were very direct with me and honest and I've always respected those kinds of people. They respected the fact that I was honest. They did not like that I would say something about the company. I understand that and I appreciate the way that they discussed it with me."

In addition to sharing his thoughts on the NFL's officiating issues and the Gottlieb controversy, Aikman also talked about what it's been like to work with Joe Buck for nearly 20 years, how he feels about calling two NFL games a week, what he thinks of people who claim he's biased for the Cowboys, doing commercials with Hulk Hogan and much more.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Play

2. Jets safety Jamal Adams better watch out because now he's going to get in trouble with Twitter for posting an NFL video.

3. As if the country doesn't hate the Patriots and NFL referees enough, now we have this piece of information.

Content is unavailable

4. This is a good quote by Jets head coach Adam Gase.

Content is unavailable

5. Is there any chance at all this guy loses?

Content is unavailable

6. Carlton Fletcher, a columinst for the Albany Herald attempted to write a piece a couple of weeks ago titled, "Answers To Ladies' Questions About Baseball." As you would expect just based on the headline, the column did not go over well with folks on the World Wide Web. However, Fletcher did not back down from the backlash. He added an editor's note to the column yesterday and made matters much worse.

7. RANDOM YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE DAY: For some reason, there's been a lot of debate lately on social media about Seinfeld vs. Friends even though this is like comparing LeBron James to Timofey Mozgov. Despite the discussion being silly, this clip of what it would look like if Seinfeld got the Friends treatment when it came to the opening credits is amusing.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on iTunes, Spotify or Google Play. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

IN CLOSING: Under 39.5 in our annual Jags-Titans primetime debacle will be my play this evening.


Published
Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.