Who are the announcers and referees for NY Jets vs. Patriots tonight?
By Justin Fried
The NY Jets are just hours away from their second prime-time game in 10 days, as the team will play host to the New England Patriots on Thursday Night Football in their home opener.
The Jets enter this game hoping to climb to 2-1 after securing their first win of the season this past Sunday. The Patriots, meanwhile, will be looking to bounce back following their disappointing overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 2.
This will not only be Aaron Rodgers' first start as a member of the Jets against his new team's longtime rivals, but it will also mark the first game these two teams play in the post-Bill Belichick era.
Both teams are in need of a victory as they hope to solidify their place in a competitive AFC East early in the season. Here's a look at the expected announcers and referee crew for tonight's Jets-Patriots game.
Announcers for NY Jets vs. Patriots
- Network: Amazon Prime
- Play-by-Play: Al Michaels
- Analyst: Kirk Herbstreit
- Sideline: Kaylee Hartung
The Jets-Patriots game will be called by the usual Thursday Night Football announcer duo of Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit. Michaels and Herbstreit have been the TNF broadcast duo since the start of the 2022 season.
Michaels is one of the most respected and experienced football announcers, having previously spent decades as the lead play-by-play guy for Sunday Night Football and later Monday Night Football. Herbstreit has more experience calling college games, having only started doing analyst work for NFL games in 2020.
Referees for NY Jets vs. Patriots
- Crew Chief: John Hussey
- Umpire: Tony Michalek
- Down Judge: Max Causey
- Line Judge: Carl Johnson
- Field Judge: Anthony Flemming
- Side Judge: Allen Baynes
- Back Judge: Matt Edwards
- Replay Official: Andrew Lambert
- Replay Assistant: Sebrina Brunson
The officiating crew for tonight's Jets-Patriots game will be headed by crew chief John Hussey. Hussey enters his 23rd season as an NFL official and his 10th as a crew chief. Tonight will actually be Hussey's 150th game as a referee.
Hussey's crew recorded the third-most penalties and the second-most penalty yards in 2023, so don't be surprised if we see quite a few flags thrown in tonight's game.
Hussey is also the second-most experienced NFL referee behind only Carl Cheffers. This is a very experienced crew, with four different officials possessing at least 17 years of officiating experience.