Boomer barks back at Mad Dog

THIS NEEDS to end in a celebrity boxing match.

Boomer Esiason and Mad Dog Chris Russo continue to fan the flames of their pseudo-feud, taking shots at each other from behind their respective microphones. On Tuesday, Russo responded to being called “classless” when he took Esiason to task for having thin skin and on Wednesday, Esiason remained irked.

“Take it like a man, Boom, take it like a man,” Russo said Tuesday. “Jeez, take it like a man.”

It all started last Wednesday when Russo and Mike Francesa closed out an MLB Network appearance by taking shots at WFAN, where they manned the legendary “Mike and the Mad Dog” afternoon show from 1989-2008.

Mike and the Mad Dog made fun of the slumping “CMB” afternoon show that occupies their old time slot and also opined that there soon will be nobody left at the hobbled station. The comments did not sit well with Esiason and morning show co-host Gregg Giannotti, who angrily shot back at the iconic radio pair earlier Monday.

“If you don’t like what we say or what anybody says or you don’t like the criticism, here’s what I would suggest, and this is a fact: get a rating,” Russo said Tuesday on his “Mad Dog Unleashed” show. “How about getting a rating? Then if you get a rating, you get last laugh on me. I can’t say anything. You’ve got a huge platform on a 50,000-watt station that covers Yankee baseball, not to mention Giant football.”

Russo’s retaliatory rant triggered a response from Esiason Wednesday morning. Boomer accused the local media of trying to stir up trouble, but lambasted Mike and the Mad Dog for what he deemed “mean-spirited attacks” on Chris Carlin, Maggie Gray and Bart Scott. — Evan Grossman