Tag Archives: NFL Network

NFL Network plans to launch new morning show

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The NFL Network is following the lead of the Golf Channel’s Morning Drive with plans to launch a new live morning show on July 30. From the release:

Debuting Monday, July 30 just as training camps open, the new four-hour “NFL AM” kicks off at 6:00 AM ET each Monday through Friday.  NFL AM will blanket the world of the NFL with seasoned and opinionated talent who will report and debate news and examine the personalities that play the game. The show’s discussion will cover a wide-range of NFL-related topics including the cultural convergence of sports, entertainment and music. Each morning, NFL AMwill collaborate with NFL.com to take a look at the latest in fantasy football news and information.

Beginning Monday, Sept. 3, NFL AM will encore each weekday at 7:00 AM PT for West Coast fans.

It makes sense to have live programming instead of a taped show from the night before. Given that virtually every coach starts their day before dawn, you could expect to see plenty of early morning interviews.

“NFL AM will give fans a great reason to look forward to the morning,” said Mark Quenzel, NFL Network senior vice president of programming and production. “We know that our fans are looking for more football and we are excited to provide a personality-driven show which focuses on football and everything around it. There will be no better way to start their day.”

Here’s the amazing, or rather crazy thing about the show. It will orginate live from the network’s studios in Los Angeles. That means NFL AM begins at 3 a.m. PT, when some of that town’s citizens are just getting in from their PM activities. Hard to imagine that lifestyle.

NFL Network, though, did get some people to sign on. Here are the poor souls who will get their last full night of regular sleep on July 29.

Mark Kriegel (@MarkKriegel), the author of two New York Times best-sellers (Namath: A Biography and Pistol: The Life of Pete Maravich), joins NFL Network from FOXSports.com where he spent five years as a national columnist and host of the bi-weekly “Bar Fly on FOX” chat with athletes, celebrities and media. Previously, he was a distinguished media voice on the New York sports scene for 10 years as a columnist for the New York Daily News and the New York Post. He also served as a contributing editor for Esquire magazine. Kriegel’s upcoming book on boxer Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, titled The Good Son, will be released in September.

Eric Davis (@_ericdavis_), who played 13 NFL seasons at cornerback, comes to NFL Network after spending last year as co-host of “Tierney and Davis” weekdays on 95.7 The Game in San Francisco. In addition, Davis will begin his second season as the radio analyst for 49ers games this fall.  Previously, he served as an NFL analyst for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area and for KPIX-TV telecasts of 49ers preseason games. A three-time All-Pro, Davis played six seasons (1990-95) in San Francisco, helping the team to a victory in Super Bowl XXIX. A second-round draft choice from Jacksonville State, Davis also played for Carolina (1996-2000), Denver (2001) and Detroit (2002).
Brian Webber (@bwwebber), a former anchor and reporter for Fox Sports Net and a sideline reporter for NFL games on FOX, joins NFL Network after six years as lead host of Fox Sports’ digital media programming. With Fox Sports Digital, he anchored studio coverage of the NFL, MLB and NASCAR, as well as on-location coverage of the Super Bowl, Final Four and Stanley Cup Final. For the past nine years, Webber has also served as studio host and play-by-play announcer for the Tennis Channel. A graduate of Stanford University, Webber began his broadcasting career began at Fox Sports Net-Bay Area 19 years ago and later included stints as a play-by-play announcer for Fox Sports Net, ESPNU, CBS Sports Network and NCAA Productions.
Nicole Zaloumis (@nicolezaloumis) comes to NFL Network with more than a decade of sports broadcasting experience, most recently as an anchor and reporter for Comcast SportsNet New England since January 2011. Previously, Zaloumis worked for the Big Ten Network, where she co-hosted “The Friday Night Football Report” and “The Women’s Show,” and was a sideline reporter for football games. Earlier in her career, Zaloumis worked for Fox Sports Northwest, Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, the ABC affiliate in Phoenix and the NBC affiliate in Washington, DC.

Steve Wyche (@wyche89) begins his fifth season with NFL Network and NFL.com, providing reports from team facilities and games on a variety of programs including NFL GameDay Morning and NFL Total Access. Additionally, Wyche is a regular columnist on NFL.com and is the co-host of the site’s ‘Cover Two’ podcast. Previously, he covered the Falcons for four seasons for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Wyche has more than two decades of sports journalism experience including posts with the Washington Post covering the Wizards and the NBA, and the Miami Herald on the Dolphins, Heat and University of Florida beats.

 

Twitter removes draft suspense for ESPN, NFL Network

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How far were ESPN and the NFL Network behind Twitter for the draft? Let’s put it this way: I just heard Roger “Hug-Me” Goodell announce the Bears selected Gale Sayers.

If you were on Twitter last night, you knew the upcoming team’s selection several minutes before the NFL Commissioner went up to the microphone to formally announce the pick. And is he the most affectionate commissioner in sports history? I mean, could you imagine Bowie Kuhn handing out so many hugs? Definitely not Clarence Campbell.

Twitter took all the suspense out of the draft. It felt like that cell phone commercial where the annoying users already posted the video to Facebook.

The league and the networks had hoped to preserve the suspense of the draft by not showing players on their cell phone talking to teams prior to the official announcement. Now they’ll have to figure out a way to shut down Twitter.

Various outlets on Twitter were disclosing a team’s pick. Heck, even Seattle owner Paul Allen was tipping off picks.

Among his tweets:

Dallas takes Claiborne at 6

Tampa takes S Barron #7

I’m sure the league will ask Allen to cool it. However, it will be much more difficult to stop the information flow of an upcoming pick prior to the announcement from reporters who want to get it out now.

Early on, while the TV guys were speculating on who Cleveland would take,Twitter followers already knew it was running back Trent Richardson at No. 3.

That’s when I first noticed something was amiss. Pretty soon, it felt like being at a poker table where somebody was tipping cards.

Finally it dawned on me: Is the suspense being phonied up here? For instance, Chris Berman & Co. were trying to build up the drama about whether Cleveland would take Brandon Weeden with the 22d pick.

But if you were on Twitter, you already knew the Browns took the Grandpa QB. In fact, it was out there for several minutes.

Surely, ESPN’s producers had that information. Surely, master tweeters Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter knew it was Weeden.

But over on the main stage, Berman, Gruden and Kiper were acting like anxious kids waiting to see what’s inside the box. Seriously, they didn’t know?

OK, I’ve been told the producers usually know of the pick, but don’t reveal it to the guys on stage. However, this situation is different, because now many, many more people know because of Twitter.

The whole dynamic creates a huge problem. Viewers expect authenticity. There’s nothing worse than phony drama.

The networks and NFL have embraced the new age of social media, especially Twitter. It’s been very good to all.

But not last night. Twitter beat them all to the punch. Or more specifically, to one of Goodell’s hugs.