Al Michaels made a "Lake America" joke during Patriots-Browns game

Published August 28, 2026 10:31 AM Legendary play-by-play specialist Al Michaels returned to the booth on Thursday night for the Prime Video preseason game, between the Patriots and the Browns. And Michaels, who has been known to make a non-football topical reference or two, commented on one specific current event during the game.“That is Lake Erie,” Michaels said while the screen displayed an overhead shot of the Browns’ stadium. “We think it is still called Lake Erie on the right. We’re not quite sure at this point. But we’ll be by Lake something like Ontario or whatever it’s going to be called by the time we get to Buffalo [for Week 2]. “Anyway, you know what I’m talking about, some of you do. Read the news.”It was a reference to the recent decision by the Commander-in-Chief to unilaterally rebrand Lake Ontario as Lake America, given the latest iteration of the periodic squabbles with Canada.Making the remark somewhat surprising is that Michaels, who doesn’t wear his politics on his sleeve, is widely believed to be far more aligned philosophically with the man who made the change that provided the basis for the joke. Which could make it a tangible example of the reality that even the most ardent supporters of 45/47 have become exasperated and exhausted by his objectively tired and predictable shtick.It’s also a reflection of the fact that Michaels has been doing it long enough to say whatever he wants to say, whenever he wants to say it. With his former habit of making subtle (or otherwise) references to the betting line and over-unders in the days the NFL despised gambling now far less noteworthy given the normalization of all things betting, Michaels needs to find other ways to display some periodic cheekiness.