Fox’s Mark Schlereth rips WIP hosts over criticism of Eagles broadcast

Fox NFL announcer Mark Schlereth wants to make one thing clear — he doesn’t hate Eagles fans.

Schlereth, a former NFL offensive lineman turned broadcaster, called the Eagles’ win against the Washington Commanders for Fox. Since then, he’s been going back and forth with Birds fans on social media and on his Stinkin’ Truth podcast after some criticized his performance in the booth Sunday.

“I love mixing it up with Eagles fans because they’re super, super passionate, and Twitter is an extension of a locker room for me. It’s fun,” Schlereth told The Inquirer. “I like flipping people grief on there … There’s been a couple of fan bases that just absolutely hate me, which I find hilarious.”

Schlereth said he isn’t angry about the criticism coming from Eagles fans — “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion,” he said. It’s the harsh comments about his performance on Sunday made by 94.1 WIP hosts Joe DeCamara and Jon Ritchie that’s fueling his weeklong feud with the Philly fan base.

“When someone from a flagship station says I’m horrendous and critiques me of being biased, well then I have a problem,” Schlereth said. “You bring my integrity into question, my work ethic, and the way I prepare for a game? That doesn’t fly.”

On Monday morning, DeCamara briefly but passionately criticized Fox’s broadcast, which included complaints about obscured shots of the field and the decision to cut away from a scuffle between teams following a touchdown by new Eagles wide receiver Julio Jones. But DeCamara also went off on Schlereth specifically, called him a “horrendous” and “boring” broadcaster.

“He’s a nice guy. I’ve interviewed him a couple of times,” DeCamara said of Schlereth. “He’s a bad NFL announcer … Find someone better!”

Ritchie certainly wasn’t an angry about the broadcast as his colleague, but said Schlereth “does seem to have a bit of a bias, and that did come through at times.”

That struck a nerve with Schlereth, who said he and his crew paid out of pocket to take a train from Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia Saturday so they could meet with Eagles players and coaches ahead of the game in person.

“If I’m just so biased against Philadelphia, do you think I’d spend $350 of my own money and all day going up on a train and back? Of course not,” Schlereth said. “I expect those comments from fans, but I certainly don’t expect it from media members who know better.”

DeCamara couldn’t be reached for comment.

» READ MORE: Eagles announcer Mike Quick pulled a John Kruk during win over Commanders

While Schlereth spent six seasons of his 12-year NFL career playing in Washington, he said he hasn’t had a relationship with the team since it was purchased by Dan Snyder in 1999. Schlereth doesn’t know new owner Josh Harris, and said he criticized the Commanders so harshly on his podcast that coaches brought his remarks up prior to the game.

Schlereth, who called the game alongside veteran play-by-play announcer Chris Myers, said the disconnect with Eagles fans was likely due to the fact he thought Washington played well against a much better team, and his broadcast reflected that.

“Washington did a great job, hanging 31 points on an Eagles defense and football team that in my mind is far superior,” Schlereth said. “So if fans want to be mad because I praised Washington, and they didn’t feel like the Eagles got enough love or whatever, that doesn’t bother me. But I thought we covered the game fairly.”

Schlereth is in his seventh season calling games for Fox after jumping over from ESPN in 2017. During that time, he’s called his fair share of Eagles games, and it’s possible he could end up in Philly later this year, since Fox has four Birds games remaining on its schedule. But he won’t be in the booth Sunday when the Eagles take on the Dallas Cowboys. Called that game is Fox’s top NFL crew — Kevin Burkhardt (a Birds fan growing up) and former Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen.

Meanwhile, DeCamara and Ritchie — a former Eagles fullback — are closing in on their first year replacing veteran broadcaster Angelo Cataldi. So far, the duo have been a ratings success story, retaining Cataldi’s large morning audience.

» READ MORE: Eagles beat writers make their predictions for the Cowboys game in Week 9