It certainly wasn’t his first NFL action, but former center A.Q. Shipley felt like he was “playing football again” on Saturday during his first radio broadcast as the Arizona Cardinals’ new color analyst.
“I didn’t eat any food beforehand. I had all the feels again,” Shipley said Monday on Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke. “But I think it went well. The preseason is probably going to be the hardest you’re ever going to deal with. You got 90 names versus 53. … I’d rather start with the hardest versus the easiest.”
Shipley, who played 12 years in the NFL, including five with Arizona, joined long-time sideline reporter Paul Calvisi in the radio booth but, once the regular season begins, he will be accompanied by play-by-play voice Dave Pasch.
Like many Cardinals fans, Shipley said he was pleased to see starters — including quarterback Kyler Murray — getting some reps early on.
“I think you need to play in the preseason,” Shipley said. “(Even) if it’s one series every single preseason game, you’re going to be better off than if you got none, in my opinion.”
Getting a close-up look at those he’ll be learning about all season was a positive, but there were a few players Shipley wants more from.
“It’s the starting (offensive) guards,” Shipley said. “For (coach Jonathan Gannon) to give (right guard Isaiah Adams and left guard Evan Brown) a vote of confidence was huge, I think, for their psyche and for their confidence. But again, still got to keep doing it. … I’d like to see a little bit more out of those guys and one-on-one reps, I think that’s going to be huge.”
Shipley also singled out pass rusher Jordan Burch, saying he wants to witness how the 2025 NFL Draft third-round pick handles “better competition” as the preseason ramps up.
A.Q. Shipley on what surprised him during his first NFL broadcast
Besides the general mechanics of timing his words and managing his voice inflection, Shipley said the penalty process and aftermath are something to get used to.
“A penalty’s called, and OK, (I’m thinking) ‘How does that operation go?'” Shipley said. “How do you get your words out, but then don’t step on the referee when he’s about to talk and then get that out quick enough?”
Though it was his first time on a live broadcast, Shipley joked he’s been calling football games from his couch for years.
“My wife always says whenever I’m sitting there calling it, I’ll say something and then Cris Collinsworth says the same thing two minutes later,” Shipley said.
He recalled that his favorite thing to do as an NFL center was to see things before they happened, and now that instinct can be shared with thousands of residents across the Valley.