Sports Media News

Keeping Up With All The Industry Press Releases

Archives for December 2008

2010 PRO BOWL TO BE PLAYED IN SOUTH FLORIDA, TELEVISED BY ESPN

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2010 PRO BOWL TO BE PLAYED IN SOUTH FLORIDA

The National Football League announced today that the Pro Bowl following the 2009 season will be played on Sunday, January 31, 2010 and televised live on ESPN at 8 PM ET from Dolphin Stadium in South Florida, also the site of Super Bowl XLIV a week later on Sunday, February 7.

The 2010 Pro Bowl will be the first played prior to the Super Bowl and only the second Pro Bowl played in the same city as the Super Bowl. The Los Angeles Coliseum hosted the first Super Bowl on January 15, 1967 and the Pro Bowl the following week.

The site and date of Pro Bowl games after 2010 will be determined at a later date and will include playing the game on a rotating basis in Honolulu, Hawaii, host of the NFL’s All-Star game since 1980.

The initiative to experiment with the Pro Bowl schedule and location was discussed over the past two years with NFL club owners, the NFL Players Association, the NFL Player Advisory Council, and other players, and it received wide player and club support.

“We are looking at alternatives to strengthen the Pro Bowl,” said NFL Commissioner ROGER GOODELL. “We will continue to work with the players to make it a great event and will evaluate this concept after the 2010 Pro Bowl.”

“Moving the Pro Bowl to the Sunday prior to the Super Bowl can add even more excitement to Super Bowl week, one of the most anticipated weeks of the year,” said FRANK SUPOVITZ, the NFL’s senior vice president of events.  “Taking the Pro Bowl to new locations can showcase our top players to more fans around the country. We are also in discussions with key leaders in Hawaii to continue our partnership with the State of Hawaii, which has embraced the Pro Bowl for 30 years.”

“ESPN presents year-round coverage of the NFL and will work together with the league to promote the 2010 Pro Bowl as one of the kickoff events to Super Bowl XLIV week in South Florida,” added JOHN WILDHACK, ESPN executive vice president, program acquisitions and strategy.

In addition to the Pro Bowl’s annual ticket subscribers, tickets to the 2010 Pro Bowl at Dolphin Stadium will be made available to Dolphins season ticket holders, as well as to fans across the nation. Pro Bowl annual ticket subscribers in Hawaii will maintain their account status for any future games at Aloha Stadium.

The 2009 NFL Pro Bowl will be played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii on Sunday, February 8 and will be televised on NBC at 4:30 PM ET.

NFL on FOX is No. 1

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NFL ON FOX IS NO. 1 FOR SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR

FOX Posts Third Most-Watched NFL Season Ever;
National Doubleheader Game is TV’s Top Fall Program

FOX NFL SUNDAY, Nation’s No. 1 Pre-Game Show 15 Years Running,

Scores Highest Rating in Three Years

New York – The NFL ON FOX is No. 1 – again.

FOX’s fifteenth NFL regular season coverage came to a close last Sunday (12/28), and based on fast national ratings released today by Nielsen Media Research, it is the highest-rated NFL network for the second consecutive year. The NFL on FOX averaged a 10.5/22 household rating/share for all games, beating NBC’s 10.2/16 in prime time, CBS’ 10.0/21 and ESPN’s 7.6/12 on Monday nights. Prior to last season, no Sunday afternoon NFL broadcaster had ever beaten the prime-time broadcast package since its inception in 1970, and now FOX can make the claim two years running.

FOX was also the season’s most-watched NFL carrier, with an average audience of 17.0 million, followed by NBC (16.7 million) and CBS (16.2 million). This season’s 17.0 million average audience makes this the third most-watched NFL on FOX season ever, only bested in 1995 (18.2 million) and 2007 (17.1 million).

FOX NFL SUNDAY continued its dominance as America’s most-watched NFL pre-game show. The show notched a 3.3/8 household rating/share, its best average rating in three seasons, and a +6% improvement over last year (3.1/8). FOX NFL SUNDAY also extended its lead over CBS’s The NFL Today (2.7/7) to 22% after winning by +19% in each of the last two seasons. This marks the fifteenth straight year that FOX has out-rated its head-to-head NFL pre-game show competition.

Additional Highlights:

  • FOX’s NATIONAL GAMES on doubleheader Sundays rank as television’s highest-rated and most-watched fall program in any day-part. FOX’s nine National Games averaged a 13.7/26 (22.3 million viewers), beating ABC’s Dancing with the Stars (12.6/18) in rating and CBS’s CSI (20.4 million) for most-watched honors.
  • FOX’s National Games are also the season’s highest-rated show among Adults 18-49 with an 8.2 rating, followed by ABC’s Desperate Housewives (6.7/15).
  • This season’s ratings leave absolutely no doubt that 4:15 PM ET is the NFL’s premier time period. All of the season’s ten highest-rated games were 4:15pm games on FOX or CBS, and the 4:15 on either network beat the same day’s prime time game on NBC 15 of 16 dates.
  • FOX’s 10.5/22 HH rating is virtually flat with the network’s 10.4 average from 2000 to 2007, and last year’s 10.7/23. The slight year-to year decline in households and average audience were driven mostly by two of the NFC’s most popular teams – the Cowboys and Packers – combining to go 15-17 this year after going 26-6 a year ago.
  • Excluding the record low on Thanksgiving (-20% from ’07), Sunday ratings on FOX were off just 1% from a year ago (10.5 vs. 10.6), and flat on viewership (16.8 million).

– FOX SPORTS –

CBS’s Simms on Baltimore-Miami Playoff game0

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“THE NFL ON CBS” BEGINS AFC PLAYOFF COVERAGE WITH

BALTIMORE RAVENS-MIAMI DOLPHINS WILD CARD GAME #2 ON SUNDAY, JAN. 4 ON CBS

AUDIBLES WITH LEAD ANALYST PHIL SIMMS

THE NFL ON CBS begins its coverage of the 2009 American Football Conference Playoffs with the national broadcast of Wild Card Playoff Game #2 on Sunday, Jan. 4 (1:00 PM, ET) live on the CBS Television Network.  AFC East champions and No. 3-seeded MIAMI DOLPHINS (11-5) host the No. 6-seeded BALTIMORE RAVENS (11-5).

CBS Sports’ lead announce team of Jim Nantz and Phil Simms call the action live from Dolphins Stadium in Miami, Fla.  Lance Barrow is the coordinating producer of THE NFL ON CBS and lead game producer and Mike Arnold is the lead game director.

CBS Sports’ coverage of THE NFL ON CBS begins with THE NFL TODAY, the Network’s pre-game studio show (12:00 Noon-1:00 PM, ET), with host James Brown and analysts Dan Marino, Boomer Esiason, Shannon Sharpe and Bill Cowher, along with NFL TODAY “General Manager” Charley Casserly, as well as reporters Lesley Visser and Sam Ryan, live from THE NFL TODAY studio at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City.

Eric Mann is senior producer and Bob Matina is director of THE NFL TODAY.

CBS Sports’ coverage of the AFC Playoff games is in HDTV, the highest definition television format – 1080i lines of picture resolution – along with 5.1 digital audio.

Sean McManus is President, CBS News & Sports and serves as executive producer of CBS Sports’ coverage of THE NFL ON CBS.  Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

* * * * *

PHIL SIMMS

(On Baltimore-Miami)

I give the Dolphins a little bit of an advantage in this respect, they played the Baltimore Ravens.  They experienced it.  And so, they realized how strong they were, how hard they play and how unique their defense is when you see it live.  Knowing they have that experience, the Dolphins can use that information and design, prepare and practice…(On Baltimore):  They did so many things well in the first game that they are just going to try and do it again.  They physically dominated the game. They did not let the so called “wildcat” disrupt much. They will draw upon that and tell themselves, ‘Hey, it’s playoffs.  We just have to ratchet it up another notch.’  Also in Baltimore’s favor, they are so versatile on defense that even though you saw something the first time you played them, they may decide to give you something completely different.  It is truly a guessing game. Can you have success against them? Yes you can. You can make plays against their defense.  Most importantly, you must be well in tune and accept the fact that there will be a lot of bad plays.  Sometimes just getting sacked or throwing it away and punting the football are all good options versus this Ravens defense…(On Chad Pennington): The big thing for him this year is that he did not have to rehab from injury this off-season.  That gave him a chance to get stronger physically, and to rest mentally.  He didn’t have to worry about whether he would be healthy.  That is a tremendous mental strain on athletes, especially quarterbacks when you are talking about their throwing arm.  He then got the fresh start in Miami where people appreciate, marvel and believe in what he is doing.  He doesn’t get second-guessed.  That is not a knock against New York and the fans.  But if he had duplicated the season he has had in Miami and did it in New York, I don’t think people would be that excited about it. They would say, ‘Oh well, can he win the playoffs?  Can he do it all?’  And if he can’t then, ‘We should have gotten someone who could have gotten us over the hump.’

* * * * *

Following are THE NFL ON CBS assignments for the AFC Playoffs (subject to change).

AFC WILD CARD GAME #2 – Jan. 4, 2009

GAME PLAY-BY-PLAY/ANALYST PRODUCER/DIRECTOR

1:00 PM, ET starts:

Baltimore @ Miami                  Jim Nantz/Phil Simms                            Lance Barrow/Mike Arnold

AFC DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF GAME #1 – Saturday, Jan. 10

GAME PLAY-BY-PLAY/ANALYST PRODUCER/DIRECTOR

4:30 PM, ET starts:

TBD @ Tennessee                   Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf                   Mark Wolff/Bob Fishman

AFC DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF GAME #2 – Sunday, Jan. 11

GAME PLAY-BY-PLAY/ANALYST PRODUCER/DIRECTOR

4:30 PM, ET start:

TBD @ Pittsburgh                    Jim Nantz/Phil Simms                            Lance Barrow/Mike Arnold

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – Sunday, Jan. 18

GAME PLAY-BY-PLAY/ANALYST PRODUCER/DIRECTOR

6:30  PM, ET start:

TBD                                         Jim Nantz/Phil Simms                            Lance Barrow/Mike Arnold

* * * * *

ESPN Classic to Present Special MLB Game of the Week Jan. 5 Through Opening Night

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ESPN Classic to Present Special MLB Game of the Week Jan. 5 Through Opening Night

To Commemorate ESPN’s 20th Season of Televising MLB

ESPN Classic will feature a classic Major League Baseball game every Monday night (generally at 8 p.m. ET) starting January 5 and continuing to the start of the 2009 regular season. The series, which will celebrate the 20th season of MLB on ESPN, begins with the re-airing of ESPN’s first-ever MLB telecast – Baltimore at Kansas City (April 9, 1990). In addition to the weekly Monday telecasts, ESPN Classic will present nightly classic MLB games at 8 p.m. the week of March 30 leading up to Opening Night on ESPN (Sunday, April 5).

ESPN Classic also plans to televise a MLB game of the week during the MLB season, from April through October ’09 (schedule TBD).

ESPN Classic’s January and February schedule (all times 8 p.m. ET):

Date

Game

Mon., Jan. 5

1990 Opening Day: Baltimore at Kansas City

ESPN’s first MLB regular-season telecast

Mon., Jan. 12

1991 World Series, Game 7: Atlanta at Minnesota

Jack Morris pitched a 10-inning shutout as the Twins won 1-0

Mon., Jan. 19

1992 NLCS, Game 7: Pittsburgh at Atlanta

Francisco Cabrera drove home Sid Bream to advance the Braves to the World Series

Mon., Jan. 26

1993 World Series, Game 6: Philadelphia at Toronto

Joe Carter hit a three-run, walk off home run for the Blue Jays

Mon., Feb. 2

1994 regular season: Anaheim at Texas

Kenny Rogers became the first left-hander in A.L. history to throw a perfect game

Mon., Feb. 9

1995 regular season: Anaheim at Baltimore

Cal Ripken, Jr., broke Lou Gehrig’s record with 2,131 consecutive games played

Mon., Feb. 16

1996 World Series, Game 4: N.Y. Yankees at Atlanta

Yankees erased a 6-0 deficit and won in extra innings on Wade Boggs’ bases-loaded walk

Mon., Feb. 23

1997 World Series, Game 7: Cleveland at Florida

Marlins became the first wild card team to win the World Series in the franchise’s fifth season

20 Years of Major League Baseball on ESPN

ESPN has televised Major League Baseball since 1990 and its coverage is highlighted by Sunday Night Baseball – Major League Baseball’s longest-running, season-long, exclusive franchise – Monday Night Baseball, featuring up to three co-exists (carry back to the local markets) per team, and Wednesday Night Baseball. Baseball Tonight is televised nightly throughout the regular- and post-seasons. ESPN also televises the Home Run Derby and other All-Star related programming. For the 12th year, ESPN Radio will provide coverage from Opening Night through the final game of the 2009 World Series.

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“I applaud this team, but next week it’s over. Peyton Manning is coming to town.” — Deion Sanders on NFL GameDay Final

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Week 17 (Dec. 28, 2008) – Quotable from NFL GameDay Final

on NFL Network

(Special Wild Card Weekend Shows – Sat. 12 Midnight ET; Sun. 8:00 PM ET)

“I applaud this team, but next week it’s over. Peyton Manning is coming to town.”

– Deion Sanders on San Diego Chargers, who won AFC West and host Indianapolis on Saturday night in AFC Wild Card

“Sparano should be Coach of the Year, not only for what he did for the Miami Dolphins, but leaving the Dallas Cowboys sent that offense into total disarray.”

– Deion Sanders on Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano

“That’s vintage Donovan McNabb, extending plays, keeping his eyes downfield, getting the ball in the hands of his playmakers.”

– Deion Sanders on McNabb’s second-quarter pass to RB Correll Buckhalter, who gained 59 yards and set up Eagles’ first touchdown of game

“Tarvaris Jackson is going to get blitzed early and often.  We’ll find out if they can handle the blitzes, and some of those are run blitzes to stop Adrian Peterson.”

— Steve Mariucci on Philadelphia’s defense facing Minnesota in NFC Wild Card game

“We give LT and the other stars on the offense a lot of credit, but that offensive line is really doing its job.”

— Deion Sanders on San Diego Chargers

“The defense is the only thing that kept the Cowboys in it down the stretch. Offensively is where you assess blame.”

– Deion Sanders on Dallas Cowboys

“Physical, great hands, great routes, great receiver.”

– Deion Sanders on Texans WR Andre Johnson, who led the NFL in receptions (115) and receiving yards (1,575)

“This is what Tom Brady can’t give you. Matt Cassel can run.”

– Deion Sanders on Patriots QB Matt Cassel, who scrambled for a first down on a 4th-and-5 in second quarter of New England’s 13-0 win over Bills

“Ed Reed is the best safety in the game.”

– Deion Sanders on Ravens S Reed, who had two interceptions in Baltimore’s playoff-clinching win vs. Jacksonville

***        Additional exclusive video clips from Sunday’s NFL GameDay Final are available on NFL.com.  Click on the video segments.  These videos include:

– A Look at LaDainian Tomlinson’s first 3 TD game of 2008

– http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80db5719

– Deion’s “Let’s Go Primetime” Segment

http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d80db72ec

And 51 Week 17 highlights on the “Featured Video” page plus much more on the NFL GameDay page.

11:30 PM -1:00 AM ET: NFL GameDay Final

Host: Rich Eisen Analysts: Deion Sanders and Steve Mariucci

NFL GameDay Final is the definitive exclamation point on Sundays providing unlimited highlights of all the games, plus post-game press conferences, interviews from the field and locker room, audio captured throughout the day and expert analysis.

“Dallas is one of the great choke artists of all time.” – Football Night’s Collinsworth

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HIGHLIGHTS FROM WEEK 17 OF NBC’s “FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA”

“Dallas is one of the great choke artists of all time.” – Football Night’s Collinsworth

“The Baltimore Ravens are one of the most frightening teams in the NFL right now.” – Football Night’s Collinsworth

NBC to Broadcast Wild Card Doubleheader Next Saturday (Atlanta at Arizona & Indianapolis at San Diego or Denver)

Media Conference Call Tuesday, 11:30 a.m. ET with Madden & Collinsworth to Preview Playoffs

NEW YORK – Dec. 28, 2008 – Following are highlights from NBC’s “Football Night in America” studio show, as host Bob Costas, co-host Cris Collinsworth, co-host Keith Olbermann, co-host Dan Patrick, analysts Tiki Barber and Jerome Bettis, and reporter Peter King of Sports Illustrated take a look at the day’s top storylines in the NFL:

NBC SPORTS TO BROADCAST WILD CARD DOUBLEHEADER; MEDIA CONFERENCE CALL TUESDAY: NBC Sports will broadcast an NFL Wild Card doubleheader next Saturday beginning with a special edition of Football Night in America Saturday at 4 p.m. ET. At 4:30 p.m. ET, the Arizona Cardinals will host the Atlanta Falcons. At 8 p.m. ET, the Indianapolis Colts will be on the road against the winner of tonight’s Denver Broncos-San Diego Chargers game.

To preview the Wild Card games, NBC Sports will conduct a media conference call Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. ET with John Madden and Cris Collinsworth (call in number to follow tomorrow morning).

COLLINSWORTH ON THE COWBOYS: “Dallas is one of the great choke artists of all time. All those special players, Roy Williams, ‘Pacman’ Jones, completely collapsed on them today.”

COLLINSWORTH ON T.O. HURTING THE COWBOYS: “You just have to wonder if all this would have happened if Bill Parcells was around or a coach of that ilk to take a stand and to not allow it.”

COLLINSWORTH ON FEUD BETWEEN PHILIP RIVERS & JAY CUTLER: “A catfight that will never make pay-per-view.”

PATRICK ON THE LIONS: “0 and 16 — they earned it.”

PATRICK ON ROETHLISBERGER PLAYING TODAY: “You’d get more out of practice than you do playing against Cleveland.”

BETTIS ON DEANGELO WILLIAMS: “The last part of the season, he’s arguably been the best player in the NFL, not just the best running back.”

COLLINSWORTH ON CAROLINA: “I think Carolina’s going to the Super Bowl, I really do. I’ve been watching the New York Giants and looking at these two teams, right now Carolina’s the better team.”

COLLINSWORTH ON THE BUCS: “I always like to say something on television that’s never been said before: it is the Buccaneers defense that blew it. They look old. It’s over, it’s time for a change.”

BETTIS ON THE BUCS DEFENSE: “They’re living by their name, not the talent.”

COLLINSWORTH ON THE RAVENS: “To me the Baltimore Ravens are one of the most frightening teams in the NFL right now. With the way they can play defense and now Joe Flacco getting hot, watch out, we may have another team coming off the bottom of the seedings and winning a Super Bowl.”

COLLINSWORTH PREDICTING BRETT FAVRE WILL RETIRE: “He’s been such a great player and I don’t want to demean what he’s done but this has been just a horrible end of the year between he and Kris Jenkins.”

COSTAS ON THE FAVRE SIGNING: “They did the right thing. You can’t guarantee outcomes.”

FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA:
Michael Weisman is the executive in charge of production, “Football Night in America,” Sam Flood is coordinating producer and Bucky Gunts serves as director.

NFL WILD CARD & DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED

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NFL WILD CARD & DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED

Commissioner ROGER GOODELL announced today the schedule of sites, dates and times for the National Football League Wild Card games of January 3-4 and Divisional Playoffs of January 10-11 (all times Eastern):

NFL WILD CARD WEEKEND

Saturday, January 3

NFC: 4:30 PM (ET)

Atlanta (11-5) at Arizona (9-7) (NBC-TV)

AFC: 8:00 PM (ET)

Indianapolis (12-4) at Denver (8-7) or San Diego (7-8) (NBC-TV)

Sunday, January 4

AFC: 1:00 PM (ET)

Baltimore (11-5) at Miami (11-5) (CBS-TV)

NFC: 4:30 PM (ET)

Philadelphia (9-6-1) at Minnesota (10-6) (FOX-TV)

NFL DIVISIONAL PLAYOFFS

Saturday, January 10

AFC: 4:30 PM (ET)

Baltimore (11-5) or Denver (8-7)/San Diego (7-8) or Indianapolis (12-4) at Tennessee (13-3) (CBS-TV)

NFC: 8:15 PM (ET)

Arizona (9-7) or Atlanta (11-5) or Minnesota (10-6) at Carolina (12-4) (FOX-TV)

Sunday, January 11

NFC: 1:00 PM (ET)

Arizona (9-7) or Atlanta (11-5) or Philadelphia (9-6-1) at New York Giants (12-4) (FOX-TV)

AFC: 4:45 PM (ET)

Miami (11-5) or Denver (8-7) or Indianapolis (12-4) or San Diego (7-8) at Pittsburgh (12-4) (CBS-TV)

In the Divisional Playoffs, the division champion with the best record in each conference is host to the surviving Wild Card Weekend team with the lowest playoff ranking. The division champion with the second-best record in each conference is host to the surviving Wild Card Weekend team with the highest playoff ranking. There are no restrictions on intradivision games.

Once teams are ranked for the playoffs, positions do not change:

American Football Conference

National Football Conference

1. Tennessee (South Division champion)

1. New York Giants (East Division champion)

2. Pittsburgh (North Division champion)

2. Carolina (South Division champion)

3. Miami (East Division champion)

3. Minnesota (North Division champion)

4. Denver or San Diego (West Division champion)

4. Arizona (West Division champion)

5. Indianapolis

5. Atlanta

6. Baltimore

6. Philadelphia

The AFC (CBS, 6:30 PM ET) and NFC (FOX, 3:00 PM ET) Championship Games will be played on Sunday, January 18, and Super Bowl XLIII at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay, Florida on Sunday, February 1 (NBC).

The annual AFC-NFC Pro Bowl will be played in Honolulu, Hawaii on Sunday, February 8 (NBC).

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Glazer Reports Favre Not Happy Playing For Mangini

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Glazer Reports Favre Not Happy Playing For Mangini

Plus What Coaches Are In/Out For Next Season

Strahan: McNabb & Eagles Will Not Lay Down Against the Cowboys

Jimmy Johnson: You Can’t Imagine How Miserable It Is to Lose Like the Lions

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FOX NFL INSIDER Jay Glazer reports that Brett Favre is unhappy playing in New York for Eric Mangini: “With Favre, who knows? Do I think he’s done? Yes. Everybody I’ve talked to thinks he’s done. There are a couple of reasons. He talked about his shoulder. It has gotten worse over the last couple of weeks. The other issue is his happiness. Is he happy playing for Eric Mangini? The answer I keep getting is no. In Green Bay, Favre earned the right to be treated differently. With the Jets he’s treated like everyone else. He gets called to the ‘Principal’s Office’ and is grilled by Mangini for the decisions he’s making in games. On Wednesdays and Thursdays the players are quizzed about their upcoming opponent and Favre feels it’s homework they don’t need. I don’t think he enjoys it that much. I don’t think he’s happy playing for Mangini.”

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Glazer also reports which NFL coaches will be in or out after this season:  “Michael Singletary is in, I know that the 49ers are working on a long-term extension with him and it could be done as early as tonight, a 5-year extension.  Offensive coordinator Mike Martz is out, though I’m hearing that Singletary wanted him back but the front office wanted Martz out.

  • I’ve learned that Clark Hunt, the Chiefs owner, met with Marty Schottenheimer about a Bill Parcells-type of position, a VP position.
  • Romeo Crennel in Cleveland is out as is GM Phil Savage. They are going to start looking at guys like Scott Pioli immediately, Josh McDaniels, and Steve Spagnuolo.
  • In Houston Gary Kubiak’s is in, but I am hearing the defensive staff is out.
  • Rod Marinelli in Detroit, they are going to meet tomorrow morning and it looks like Rod will not be safe there. They are also going to do a strong search.  I’m hearing so many different names there, you hear of guys like Steve Spagnuolo, Rex Ryan, Michael Mularkey and even Mike Heimerdinger with the Tennessee Titans.
  • Jets head coach Eric Mangini, obviously if he wins today will be back and if he doesn’t win, I still think he is back.  It’s 50/50 right now, but again with the players there, I think something has to change.
  • In St. Louis, the fact that Billy Devaney was named GM this week certainly looks good for Jim Haslett. The players have put a petition to the owners that they want Haslett back.  They still are going to do an extensive search, Rex Ryan and Steve Spagnuolo could be in the mix.”

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Co-host Terry Bradshaw on wanting the Lions to lose today to finish the season 0-16: “I don’t normally pull for teams to lose but I wanted the Giants last season to lose to New England so we could see history. Today would be epic. 1-15, big deal. 0-16, to me that’s cool.”

Analyst Jimmy Johnson recalls his similar 1-15 season with the Cowboys: “I can’t describe how miserable you feel to be a part of that. I was mentally and physically drained and when you are that low, you can’t get any lower.”

Analyst Howie Long added: “It’s mind boggling, the way the NFL is set up right now, that any team could go 0-16.”

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Analyst Jimmy Johnson on QB Chad Pennington’s opportunity to beat his former team and go to the playoffs with Miami: “New York kicked Chad out. It would be justice for him to go back, win and show them that he’s an outstanding quarterback.”

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Analyst Michael Strahan on how hard of an obstacle Philadelphia will be for the Cowboys who need to only win to make the playoffs: “They’re playing against a Philadelphia Eagles team that everyone thinks is out of it. But the Eagles have a quarterback who is playing for his future. McNabb is going to play well. Brian Dawkins plays with a lot of pride. They’re not going to lie down. It’s hard to win in Philly.”

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Analyst and Super Bowl-winning head coach Jimmy Johnson has some advice for NFL coaches going in to playoffs: “First, you must understand the playoffs are not the regular season. The intensity and the excitement will be higher. The opponent is as talented and will be as prepared and as good as you are, if not better. Keep your preparation as close to what you can as the regular season. Give the players a reason you’re going to win and always have a little something, what I call a momentum changer, ready on game day. It can be a trick play on offense, a certain blitz on defense or even a fake on special teams. The players will be excited about surprising your opponent. Now don’t get me wrong, sound fundamentals and protecting the ball will still win the game, but one or two surprises can be the difference.  All season long, the computers have been studying your tendencies, so now is the time to break some of those tendencies.  Believe me, your opponent will know them as well as you do.  As far as resting players a week before the playoffs, each team is different.  Do you need a confidence builder as the Giants did last year when they played New England or  is it more important to get your team healthy? Last thing, be confident, be aggressive and take some chances. It might just get you a ring.”

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Today’s edition of FOX NFL SUNDAY included the latest chapter of The Terry Awards, Bradshaw’s unique take on this season’s distinguished players and coaches.  This year’s Terry Awards go to:


Young Terry Award (AFC)

Joe Flacco – Baltimore Ravens

Old Terry Award (AFC)

Kerry Collins – Tennessee Titans

NFL MVP

Matt Ryan – Atlanta Falcons

Still My Guy

Brett Favre – New York Jets

Great Guy/Great Coach

Mike Holmgren – Seattle Seahawks

Old Terry Award (NFC)
Kurt Warner – Arizona Cardinals

Coach of the Year

Jeff Fisher – Tennessee Titans

Assistant Coach of the Year

David Lee – Miami Dolphins

Next Jimmy Johnson Award

Mike Smith – Atlanta Falcons

Comeback Player of the Year

Jake Delhomme – Carolina Panthers

Next Michael Strahan Award

Justin Tuck – New York Giants

Next Howie Long Award

DeMarcus Ware – Dallas Cowboys

Great Player/Great Hair

Troy Polamalu – Pittsburgh Steelers

Mr. Tough Guy

James Harrison – Pittsburgh Steelers

Coach Who Does Not Panic

Tony Dungy – Indianapolis Colts

Best at Filling the Gap

Shaun Rogers – Cleveland Browns

Albert Haynesworth – Tennessee Titans


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Analyst Michael Strahan on the outlook for the Carolina Panthers: “After last week’s loss, I have more respect for Carolina. This team is better and more consistent than they were earlier in the year. They completed against the Giants, the best team in the league, in their house. Carolina’s confidence should be at an all-time high.”

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CBS’s Boomer: If Jets lose, Armageddon in NY

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NEWS, NOTES & QUOTES FROM CBS SPORTS’ “THE NFL TODAY” WITH

JAMES BROWN, DAN MARINO, SHANNON SHARPE, BILL COWHER AND

BOOMER ESIASON FOR WEEK 17 ON DECEMBER 28

More People Watch THE NFL ON CBS Than Any Other Network Through 15 Weeks of

2008 NFL Season

Through 15 weeks of the 2008 NFL regular-season, more people watch NFL games on CBS than any other network, based on a cumulative analysis of Nielsen data.

Through 15 weeks of the 2008 season (September 4-December 15, 2008), THE NFL ON CBS regular-season games were seen by an estimated 145.9 million viewers, +16% higher than NBC’s 126.1 million viewers, +4% higher than FOX’s 140.8 million viewers and +53% higher than ESPN’s 95.4 million.

The cumulative audience is based on Total Viewers (Persons 2+) who have watched at least six minutes of NFL game coverage since the start of the 2008 regular-season.

* * * * *

►QUICK HITS

(On New York Jets)

SHANNON SHARPE: I think the Jets were overvalued…They had two huge road wins; go to New England and Tennessee and win, then come home and lose to Denver, then go on the road  and lose to San Francisco and Seattle.  They are not playing like a playoff-caliber football team for one simple reason – their quarterback puts the ball in harm’s way.  When you turn the football over at that position, you don’t win football games no matter how good you are defensively.

(On Miami-New York Jets)

BOOMER ESIASON: I like the Jets to win the game, if they don’t it’s going to be Armageddon around here tomorrow.

►FOOTBALL FACE-OFF

(On what player might not be back with his team next year)

BILL COWHER: This is nothing against the Dallas Cowboys but I’m going to say T.O. (Terrell Owens)…T.O. was  unhappy with his role in an offense when they had Witten and Barber, but all of a sudden now you acquire Roy Williams.  All of a sudden you bring back a healthy Felix Jones.  Where does he fit in? This offense is about developing the offense, not trying to keep the players happy.  I say they have to get rid of T.O.  They have enough playmakers.

BOOMER: Brett Favre…I think he’s going to retire at the end of the year. Plaxico Burress is not coming back with the New York Giants.  He may think he is rehabbing his image around here in New York, but that is not going to be the case.  The other person is maybe Chad Johnson.  Chad may not like to hear it but I don’t think the Cincinnati Bengals are going to put up with this nonsense anymore, especially when they’re going to have to give T.J. Houshmandzadeh a big contract.  And of course we all know that Matt Cassel is not coming back to the New England Patriots.  He is going to be a very rich man at this time next year.

► “INSIDE THE GAME” WITH CHARLEY CASSERLY

(On Donovan McNabb returning to Philadelphia next year)

CASSERLY: Despite all the reports, he’s not going to be traded.  He’ll be back with the Eagles next year.  He has two years to go on his contract – 2009 will be $9 million and 2010 will be $10 million.  What I can picture the Eagles doing is this – extending him on a year-to-year basis with some form of roster bonuses that he would get paid in March.  What I do not see happening is a long-term contract with a big upfront money guarantee.  He’s definitely staying in Philly.

(On Tampa Bay’s tailspin)

CASSERLY: I think it all stems from Monte Kiffin announcing that he’s going to the University of Tennessee.  [There’s] a lot of resentment in that building.  [There’s] a lot of hard feelings in that building.   Why couldn’t you wait until the end of the season?  In my opinion Monte Kiffin is the heart and soul of that defense. In the last three weeks that heart has been ripped out and it’s been reflected by their poor play on the field.

* * * * *

SUNDAY NFL COUNTDOWN NEWS AND NOTES – WEEK 17

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SUNDAY NFL COUNTDOWN NEWS AND NOTES – WEEK 17

ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown host Chris Berman and analysts Mike Ditka, Keyshawn Johnson, Cris Carter, and Tom Jackson previewed today’s NFL games.  Some excerpts:

Key quotes of the day:

Ditka on the NY Jets: “I think the NY Jets remind me of a bunch of dogs chasing cars. Every once in a while they catch the car and then they don’t know what the heck to do once they catch it. They can’t worry about egos…”

On the Detroit Lions:

Carter: “It’s hard for me to imagine what they’re going through. When I guy will say, I’m going to walk 482 miles. Well it’s pretty obvious to me that there ain’t a need of him to be to be worrying about that. This is a bad football team. No expectations, no desire to even remove that from the record.”

Ditka: “This is tough, but this would be the hall of shame, not the hall of fame. The 0-14 Bucs they were funny, John McKay made it humorous. But this is not funny gang, this is serious stuff.”

Johnson on Brett Favre: “How can I trust Brett Favre right now? Here is a guy who wanted to get out of Green Bay for all its worth. Come to N.Y., great place to play, but now all of a sudden, my shoulder hurts. It’s like these built in excuses when things haven’t worked out the way the way that you would have liked for them to. The great Brett Favre, the legendary 7 o’clock SportsCenter, oh what a hero. Now all of a sudden things don’t look so rosy and my shoulder hurts.”

Jackson on the Falcons or Panthers as team more poised for playoff run: “When you talk what quarterback would I choose, Delhomme or Matt Ryan? We take Matt Ryan. The running back is a toss up, but Michael Turner is that one guy that gives you that ability inside the 5-yard line. I think Atlanta may make a surprising run toward the Super Bowl Championship.”

On the N.Y. Jets …

Ditka: “I think the NY Jets remind me of a bunch of dogs chasing cars. Every once in a while they catch the car and then they don’t know what the heck to do once they catch it. They can’t worry about egos…”

Jackson: “I don’t trust the Jets …what’s their game plan? Are we a throwing football team with Brett Favre? Are we going to spread people out and win the game that way? Are we a pressure defense that likes to bring the blitz package? We’re going to rush three and drop seven, the way we’ve seen them do so often? I think in week 17 you have to know exactly who you are as a football team and I don’t think the Jets do.”

Are the Detroit Lions the worst team in NFL History? …

Johnson: “This is the worst team ever, in my era of watching football. This isn’t the Miami Dolphins of a year ago, this isn’t that football team. This isn’t the Indianapolis Colts when they were 3-13 with Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison, where a year later they make a strong run. This isn’t that football team. This team is pretty bad. There is one player that I can think of on this team and that’s Calvin Johnson and he happens to be a good wide receiver.”

Carter: “It’s hard for me to imagine what they’re going through. When I guy will say, I’m going to walk 482 miles. Well it’s pretty obvious to me that their ain’t no need of him to be to be worrying about that. This is a bad football team. No expectations, no desire to even remove that from the record.”

Jackson: “Tampa Bay was worse. That team that lost 14 games during the season and people forget that they went 0-26. They lost 12 games coming out the next year. That team was worse. I think that St. Louis might be worse right now. Unfortunately, Detroit will not get to play that football team and you are what your record is.”

Ditka: “This is tough, but this would be the hall of shame, not the hall of fame. The 0-14 Bucs they were funny, John McKay made it humorous. But this is not funny gang, this is serious stuff.”

On Brett Favre and Chad Pennington …

When Brett Favre was traded from the Packers to the Jets, quarterback Chad Pennington was released after eight seasons in New York.  Favre has helped in transforming the Jets from 4-12 in 2007 to 9-6 this season with a chance at the playoffs.  Pennington signed with the Dolphins and has led them to a miraculous turnaround season, from 1-15 in 2007 to 10-5, within one game of winning the AFC East division.  Today, the one team standing in Pennington’s way is his former team – the New York Jets, led by Favre.  Reporter Rachel Nichols reported on the ties that bind the two

quarterbacks. Which quarterback do our analysts trust more …

Jackson: “Chad Pennington. I trust him because I trust the team. I trust Coach Sparano. I trust Bill Parcells. I trust them to run the football. I trust Joey Porter coming off of the corner. I trust those things because they’ve done them all year round. And with Brett Favre, it also a team game, but there is some type of disconnect. I’ve said it all year long between the sideline and what’s going on, on the football field. The X’s and O’s that are playing.”

Johnson: “How can I trust  Brett Favre right now? Here is a guy who wanted to get out of Green Bay for all its worth. Come to N.Y., great place to play, but now all of a sudden, my shoulder hurts. It’s like these built in excuses when things haven’t worked out the way the way that you would have liked for them to. The great Brett Favre, the legendary 7 o’clock SportsCenter, oh what a hero. Now all of a sudden things don’t look so rosy and my shoulder hurts.”

Carter: “This is what I do know. You don’t get ready for the NFL, No.1 playing part-time and No. 2, you ain’t throwing to those receivers in Mississippi getting ready for what’s going to happen to you during the NFL season. I just haven’t seen that and I’m going with Chad.”

On Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Tony Romo …

Carter: “We don’t see him progressing as veteran quarterbacks do. Bad habits getting down the football field, trying to throw the football, shoulders at a bad angle to throw to the receiver down the field. And another thing which is horrible is in the pocket, the pump fake…well you see eventually who he has to throw it to.”

The Biggest Storyline out of Dallas (other than playoff berth)…

Jackson: “I think its Jerry Jones approach to the game. How you collect talent, bring in players that you know can play, but forget about the chemistry that goes with it. It is a lesson that has been learned by a lot of owners around the league. When you’ve got 13 pro bowlers you would expect that getting to the playoffs would be pretty easy.

Johnson: “It’s Tony Romo. It’s this reputation as a quarterback to win in December and win big games and he hasn’t done that. And now you’re starting to wonder is he having fun. Watching Tony and being around him for a short time, and watching his swagger. Now looking at him, he’s not having fun.”

Berman: “What kind of heart do they have? What kind of heart do you have? I think that’s the storyline.”

On the Falcons or Panthers as team more poised for playoff run…

Ditka: I really like Atlanta. New coach, new running back, new quarterback. I think they’ve got the tools that can take them deep into the playoffs.

Jackson: “When you talk what quarterback would I choose, Delhomme or Matt Ryan? We take Matt Ryan. The running back is a toss up, but Michael Turner is that one guy that gives you that ability inside the 5-yard line. I think Atlanta may make a surprising run toward the Super Bowl Championship.”

On Miami’s General Manager Bill Parcells future and contract renewal? …

Chris Mortensen: “When Parcells signed that four-year guaranteed contract of $12 millions dollars with Wayne Huizenga. He got an ironclad clause that allows him to walk away if Huizenga ever sells the team. And, since then, as you know, Huizenga has agreed to sell 95% of the Dolphins to NY Developer Stephen Ross. … Parcells contract specifically states that only Huizenga can be in authority over him. Once Ross officially becomes the owner, Parcells has to notify Ross within 30 days if he intends to exercise his walk-away clause and collect the full balance of $9 million dollars cash and carry and he’d be a free agent. Any team that wants his services would not owe compensation to the Dolphins. A list of teams I hear that are on the radar somewhat for Parcells if he leaves – the Jets, the Lions, the Browns, and even some pushing for Parcells to help his good friend Al Davis out of the Black Hole in Oakland.”

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