Tag Archives: NFL

What’s new for NFL 2012: Fox makes point with new graphic; Riggle, Andrews join pregame show

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Fox Sports loves graphics and other gizmos to illustrate the game. With the exception of the glowing puck, most of them work.

Fox has a new gizmo this year. It is a simple graphic to identify players on the field. Here’s an example:

 I’ll let Fox explain:

Football uniform numbers are not always easy to see from the side so FOX Sports is developing a graphics system that tells the viewer who’s who.  “It’s a new way to identity players and we’ve used similar technology during our NASCAR coverage, using pointers to follow the cars.  We’re really excited by this technology that tracks players on the field and follows them in real time where you can ID them in wide shots,” said FOX Sports Media Group President and Executive Producer Eric Shanks. 

Two banks of eight unmanned cameras are set up high in-stadium at adjacent 35 yard lines.  The cameras track all moving objects and technicians identify and tag players by number.  Once tagged, the system can generate the player’s name and place in a graphic, or “pointer,” that can be made to appear on-screen.  Once on-screen, the pointer remains until removed. 

This new tracking system debuted during FOX Sports’ coverage of Hawai’i at USC last Saturday night and was developed in conjunction with Hego US and Sportsvision.  Additional information, such as statistics, can also be inserted into the pointer.  Hego US is responsible for the tracking system and interface, while Sportvision, the supplier of the yellow first down line, creates the graphics. 

 “Rather than the old fashioned way of analysts drawing a circle on the guy beforehand, this is a better way to do it and more technically efficient way to do it,” added Shanks.

Makes sense to me.

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The core of Fox’s NFL coverage remains unchanged. Richard Deitsch of SI.com points out that the combined ages of Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Jimmy Johnson are 172. Translated: They’ve been around forever.

The guys, though, will get a new set for Fox NFL Sunday and a new comedian. Rob Riggle replaces Frank Caliendo as the resident funny man on the show. Farewell, John Madden character.

Erin Andrews also makes her presence felt on the NFL side. She will have an interview with Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers to kick off the season.

Andrews, who hosts Fox’s primetime college show, will contribute to Fox NFL Sunday and then will play a role as a sideline reporter for the Thanksgiving Day game and the playoffs.

Is it possible to get too much of this NFL? Are you kidding? Finally, real games

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Remember that scene in The Grinch Who Stole Christmas where the people of Whoville stand around the tree and sing that song that I now can’t get out of my head?

That’s how I feel about the start of the NFL season.

Fah who for-aze! Fah who for-aze!

Welcome NFL, Welcome football,

Come this way! Come this way!

Ah yes, our fest begins tonight and doesn’t end until Super Sunday in February. Dallas at New York Giants on NBC and away we go.

Now more than ever before, we can’t get enough of this NFL. The networks keep feeding us more and more, as if that 48-ounce steak they once served now is a mere appetitzer.

Endless pregame shows, endless during-the-week shows on various networks, and a new slate of Thursday night games. Picture Homer Simpson sucking up a dump truck worth of doughnuts. That’s us.

“If the Cowboys play the Giants in a parking lot in March, it’s still going to be tremendous,” said NBC’s Al Michaels. “Football is king right now. The NFL is hotter than any sport than any time in the history of this country. I can’t wait to get started.”

Michaels’ partner, Cris Collinsworth, agreed.

“You can’t give people too much of it,” Collinsworth said. “Look at all the shows, look at all the websites. Look at all the radio shows. How much more people can take? As much as we want to give them they want more and more and more. I just think the interest is not waning at all no matter what happens.”

The NFL felt bullish enough to expand the Thursday night schedule on NFL Network from 8 to 13 games this year, beginning next week with Bears-Green Bay on Sept. 13.

Obviously, an extra primetime game means one less game for CBS and Fox Sports on Sunday afternoon. When you factor in bye weeks, I asked Fox Sports president Eric Shanks if he had any concerns about the inventory of good games being diminished.

Publically, the answer is no, although I’m sure Fox would have liked that Bears-Packers game.

“You can sit around and poke holes at what (NFL scheduling guru) Howard Katz and his guys do,” Shanks said. “But every year they put together a schedule that blows everyone away. It’s magic what they do. They’ve got it down to a science. It’s really hard to throw stones at the NFL right now.”

Nope, all you can do is sing its praises and ask the NFL to keep on feeding us more. And you know they will.

Fah who for-aze! Fah who for-aze!…

 

My First Job: Jittery Golic almost had career-ending moment as analyst in first NFL game

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The NFL preseason isn’t just an opportunity for the rookies to impress on the field. It’s also a chance for the rookies to make their mark in the broadcast booth.

In the latest edition of My First Job, a look at people’s initial forays in the media business, ESPN’s Mike Golic discusses calling his first NFL preseason game shortly after retiring as a player. He describes a harrowing moment during the opening kickoff when he thought his broadcast career might be over.

Here’s Mike:

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I did color for the Jacksonville Jaguars preseason games in 1995. It was the first real gig I had going.

I had done some college football previously, but this was the NFL. This was really nerve-racking to me.

I was unbelievably nervous. I would have rather been on the field. My comfort level was on the field. But now I was describing the action, and I had to do it in a time frame to give it back to (the play-by-play man).

Kevin Harlan was the play-by-play man. He was a real pro. They kick the ball off, and Kevin went through the call and then left it open for me. I froze. Maybe I said three words.

I was like, ‘Oh my God, oh my God, I’m blowing it.’ It was just amazing to me.

I don’t know why I was so nervous because I had done college football before that and it was no big deal. But I had just gotten out of the NFL, and this was big. I’m thinking, maybe I’ll do NFL games down the road.

It was so embarrassing. When it finally went back to Kevin, I’m thinking, ‘Oh my god, what the hell was that?’

I had to calm myself. I remember saying to myself, ‘Just talk football, just talk football.’ That’s kind of what I did from then on. I got into the groove.

Still, when the game was over, I remember thinking the guy who hired me must be saying, ‘Oh my, did I make a mistake here?’

The next time I was that nervous was when Greeny (Mike Greenberg) and I did a Monday night game a few years ago. Now this was Monday Night Football. I didn’t freeze like that, because Greeny was more nervous than me. He had never done an NFL game.

Damon Hack leaves Sports Illustrated to join Golf Channel

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Damon Hack had a great gig. It doesn’t get much better than covering the NFL and golf for Sports Illustrated.

However despite a professional career as a sportswriter, Hack always wanted to get back to the broadcast side. Monday, the Golf Channel offered him the opportunity.

From the network:

He will serve as a “Golf Channel Insider” for the network’s news programming, including Morning Drive and Golf Central, and as a senior writer for GolfChannel.com. He also will be seen occasionally on NBC Sports Network, reporting golf.

I covered a few golf tournaments with Hack during the day. So naturally, I had to give him Monday grief when he mentioned he had “a broadcast agent.” Don’t get too big, big guy.

Actually, the Golf Channel opportunity came somewhat out of the blue. A few weeks ago, he served as a substitute host for Morning Drive. Apparently, he did a good job.

A subsequent GC offer coincided with Sports Illustrated looking for staff to take buyouts. So Hack even got a nice going-away prize.

“When it all came together, we thought, ‘Maybe this is a sign we should do something different,'” Hack said.

Even though Hack has spent 18 years as a sportswriter, he studied broadcasting as an undergrad at UCLA.

“I wanted to be the next Chick Hearn or Vin Scully,” he said. “I always had a quiet dream to do broadcasting, and golf is my favorite sport to cover. It couldn’t work out any better.”

Hack said his exact TV role has yet to be defined. The GC still hasn’t named a permanent co-host to join Gary Williams for Morning Drive.

Would Hack be interested?

“Definitely,” he said. “That would be great. I had a lot of fun doing the show. I think the plan for now is to get me down there and see where I fit.”

The GC also hired Ryan Burr from ESPN as an anchor for Golf Central.

 

 

 

Berman could go all the way…to becoming the most polarizing announcer in sports

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Go away for a couple of days, and what do they do? ESPN lets Chris Berman call an NFL game.

Reaction was intense yesterday with the news that Berman will do play-by-play for the San Diego-Oakland game on the Sept. 10, the second game of ESPN’s opening Monday night doubleheader.

Fortunately, ESPN didn’t name Skip Bayless as the analyst for that game. Twitter might have exploded. Instead, Trent Dilfer will be working with Boomer.

Coming off the heels of Berman’s agonizing presence at the U.S. Open, the idea that he actually will call an NFL game did not meet with universal approval to say the least.

Here’s a sample of the outrage.

awfulannouncing Reactions to the ChrisBerman MNF announcement range from “why why why” to “Dear God why?” to “GOD NOOOOO!!!”

BobVorwald Honey, you can have the TV all night on Sep 10 RT

richarddeitsch All we ask as viewers is not to be hoodwinked. So pls. don’t say ChrisBerman on SD-OAK is for fans. It’s a vanity play, pure & simple

Drew Magary of Deadspin did a post ripping apart Berman.

Berman is intolerable even as studio host, even when he’s on the mere fringes of a sporting event. Every time Tirico throws to Berman for a halftime preview during MNF, I tear both labrums reaching for the mute button. Now he’s gonna throw his gunt around and commandeer the booth for a whole game? Christ, that’s the worst.

SportsbyBrooks, which broke the story last week, almost pulled a Twitter groin with a series of angry tweets.

SPORTSbyBROOKS ESPN knows 1) it is indulging Berman 2) he campaigned for it 3) fans lose. Berman’s elaborate denial = PR ruse

The reaction clearly shows that plenty of people really don’t like the guy. The shelf life for his act probably was 20 years. It was fun for a while, but there’s a quota on cute name variations.

Listen, I’m not outraged that ESPN wanted to throw Berman a bone and let him call an NFL game. It’s the second game of a doubleheader, and most people in the East and Midwest time zones probably will be asleep for most of his call.

However, as a golf fan, I have this wish. I hope ESPN said to Berman, “We’ll give you an NFL game in exchange for taking you off the U.S. Open for the rest of time.”

ESPN’s Season-Opening MNF Doubleheader Commentator Teams (2006-present):

Year Game ESPN Commentators
2006 San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders Brad Nessler, Ron Jaworski and Dick Vermeil
2007 Arizona Cardinals at San Francisco 49ers Mike Greenberg, Mike Golic and Mike Ditka
2008 Denver Broncos at Oakland Raiders Greenberg, Golic and Ditka
2009 San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders Greenberg, Golic and Steve Young
2010 San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs Nessler and Trent Dilfer
2011 Oakland Raiders at Denver Broncos Nessler and Dilfer
2012 San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders Chris Berman and Dilfer

 

 

 

 

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.

 

 

 

 

Saturday flashback: ESPN’s rough coverage of ’81 NFL draft; Questioning why Giants took LT

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I’m going to offer a blast from the past on the weekends. It could be an old video, a print interview or profile of a famous newsmaker, or a classic story.

Given that the NFL draft is next week, I thought it would be appropriate to show a clip from ESPN’s coverage in 1981.

The draft was held at the New York Sheraton in a cramped ballroom. They probably had a Bar Mitzvah in it the week before.

My goodness, was this rough from all angles. It looks like a basement-like amateur production compared to the extravaganza you see today.

Check out the crude NFL banner hanging behind Pete Rozelle. Somebody then had to turn on his microphone.

New Orleans selected George Rogers No. 1, and a few minutes later, he stood awkwardly at the podium, unsure of what to say to the crowd.

The coverage was hosted by George Grande with analysis from Sports Illustrated’s Paul Zimmerman and Sal Marchiano.

Fast forward to the 7-minute mark, and there’s Chris Berman, with a full head of hair, conducting an interview in a restaurant.

Then at the 8-minute mark, Sam Rosen, in an interview with New York Giants punter Dave Jennings, asked if the team made a mistake choosing a defensive player with the No. 2 pick. That player just happened to be Lawrence Taylor.

And why would ESPN be talking to a punter? Can you imagine when the Colts draft Andrew Luck Thursday, an ESPN producer yells out, “Get me an interview with their punter.”

Yes, the draft has come a long way since then.