“The rest of the NFC North needs to worry because that Packers offense is back.” – Dungy
“The celebrations, the pushing, the shoving — this is just silly.” – Harrison on Steelers penalties
“There is no momentum right now for Roger Goodell’s job to be in jeopardy.” – King, on conversations with eight owners/senior team officials
STAMFORD, Conn. – September 28, 2014 – Following are highlights from Football Night in America, the most-watched studio show in sports. Bob Costas opened the show live from inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Costas was joined on site by Sunday Night Football analyst Cris Collinsworth and sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, NBC NFL analyst Hines Ward, and NBC Sports’ Josh Elliott.
Dan Patrick co-hosted Football Night from NBC Sports Group’s Studio 1. He was joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy; two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison; Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk on NBCSports.com and NBCSN, and Peter King of Sports Illustrated. Alex Flanagan reported from Levis Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on the Eagles-49ers game.
Elliott interviewed Dallas Cowboys TE Jason Witten. Patrick reported on some of the NFL’s Hispanic Heritage Month efforts.
ON LEAGUE ISSUES
King: “The last few days, I’ve talked to eight owners or prominent club officials in the NFL about the future of Commissioner Roger Goodell…there is no momentum right now for Roger Goodell’s job to be in jeopardy, but I say that with an asterisk. The owners want to see what is in the Robert Mueller report. The former FBI director is compiling a report, doing some interviews right now. No sign of when that’s going to be done. But the last thing I would say is that these owners are very concerned with the long-term image damage to the game.”
Florio on Ray Rice: “It’s not just the Mueller investigation, but Ray Rice still has an appeal pending of his indefinite suspension. A week ago, it would appear that Commissioner Roger Goodell was poised to name a hearing officer to handle that appeal, that hasn’t happened. I’m told that the NFL and the NFL Players Association are working together. There’s a chance that this process of the Ray Rice appeal could be nudged back until after the Muller investigation concludes.”
King on NFL games in London: “The game in London today was the first of three games and the NFL, in 2015, will be doing an instant replay. Also, three games in 2015 at Wembley Stadium.”
Florio on London games: “The talk continues of eventually moving a franchise to London, but there are plenty of logistical hurdles and obstacles to actually putting a team there on a full-time basis. It continues to be a very real possibility that instead of moving a team, the NFL would simply play eight regular-season games there a year, involving different teams.”
ON EAGLES AND 49ERS
Dungy on Eagles offense failing to score TD at end of game: “LeSean McCoy is a great back. Give him a chance from the one-and-a-half yard line.”
Patrick: “But give credit to the 49ers defense…They didn’t allow them to run the ball or pass the ball.”
Dungy: “I don’t think Philly had confidence running at that point because they had gotten stuffed all game.”
Dungy on 49ers: “I love what the San Francisco 49ers did. They needed a win. They went back to their formula, played great defense and ran Frank Gore. This was a big win for them.”
ON PACKERS
Dungy: “The rest of the NFC North needs to worry because that Packers offense is back.”
Harrison on Aaron Rodgers: “He proved today why he is the best quarterback in the league.”
ON LIONS
Collinsworth on emergence of Golden Tate: “Now you have someone opposite Calvin Johnson…Now (defenses) have to start balancing that out a little bit? You’ve got issues when you play the Detroit Lions.”
ON JETS
Harrison: “You have to consider giving Michael Vick an opportunity.”
Dungy on switching to Michael Vick: “I would make the switch if I were trying to win this year. If I’m trying to see if Geno Smith is my quarterback of the future, I’d stick with him.”
Dungy reacting to Rex Ryan press conference during which he said about the team’s problems ‘I don’t believe it rests on one man’: “Rex was right. This was more than just Geno Smith ups and downs.”
Harrison on Michael Vick: “If I’m a player in that locker room, I don’t want to listen to a coach telling me, ‘Hey, this is future stuff.’ Whatever…I have a proven veteran quarterback on the bench. I want to win right now. My career is not guaranteed…”
Dungy: “Are you changing quarterbacks now?”
Harrison: “I have to give Michael Vick an opportunity. You’re 1-3, you still have to play the Patriots twice, and Geno, he doesn’t have any confidence.”
ON STEELERS
Dungy on Steelers penalties: “Just the way (Mike) Tomlin explained it, undisciplined, six 15-yard penalties. You’re trying to run the clock out and you get penalties there, silly.”
Harrison: “This is very frustrating because this is a penalty that you can avoid. The celebrations, the pushing, the shoving — this is just silly.”
Patrick: “But you have this players coach. It seems like it’s coming back to haunt Mike Tomlin.”
ON BUCCANEERS
Harrison: “You have to give Coach Lovie Smith some credit. After that debacle in Atlanta, they could have easily had the mindset of, ‘Oh, here we go again.’ But they hung in there and won a game.”
ON VIKINGS
Dungy on Teddy Bridgewater: “It is amazing when you get good quarterback play. It makes the whole team play better, and Teddy Bridgewater was poised. He was accurate. He was special today in his first start.”
Harrison: “The athleticism is obvious, but the thing I liked about him was his body language. He was relaxed. He was poised. And even in tense situations, he was cool. He kind of reminded me of Russell Wilson.”
ON PANTHERS
Harrison: “I’m really concerned about that team because you look at the injuries on both offense and defense. That defense seems to have regressed a little bit. They don’t have any great playmakers in the secondary. They’re getting physically dominated at the line of scrimmage. They’re missing tackles. This team is in trouble and they have to play the Chicago Bears coming up.”
ON TEXANS
Harrison on J.J. Watt: “You tell me one guy that plays harder or with more passion and heart than J.J. Watt.”
Dungy: “And that is a coach’s dream – when your best player is your hardest worker and sets the tempo.”
Patrick to Harrison: “Didn’t you say Houston was garbage last week?”
Harrison (laughing): “I’m still not a believer. I love J.J. Watt, you’re one of my favorites, but I’m still not a believer.”
ON SAINTS
Dungy on team’s road struggles: “I think it’s the pass protection. I think they have problems dealing with the noise on the road.”
ON COWBOYS
Harrison on importance of Cowboys rushing game: “The more you take it out of Tony Romo’s hands, the less opportunity he has to turn the ball over.”
Following are highlights from Football Night in America:
JASON WITTEN WITH JOSH ELLIOTT
Note: A core element of Jason Witten’s SCORE Foundation is the prevention of domestic violence. In 2012, Witten was named the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year, which is granted to the player who demonstrates outstanding contributions to society off-the-field while handling himself in an exemplary fashion in uniform. For more information on Witten’s foundation, click here http://www.jasonwitten82.com/
Elliott: What’s it been like to see the issue thrust to the forefront?
Witten: “It’s disappointing in general to see what has taken place in the NFL. Having said that, I think people are now becoming aware that this is something that has been going on for a long time, not just in the NFL, but on a bigger scale in our country. There are so many guys in the NFL that are doing so many good things. I’ve been fortunate to understand my story, and my path to where I am today, and realize you have a platform and opportunities and that you’re role models. That’s something you need to demand of yourself and demand of others to be on the outreach, and let people know that we can put a stop to this.”
Elliott: What more can we do?
Witten: “As athletes, in general, you’re big and you’re strong and have the opportunity to stop it. I look at my own life and my example. Now, I’m a father of three and I’ve put a stop to that, not being afraid to step out. We all make mistakes, I understand that, but there is a standard which we have to create and demand from each other that we can’t accept domestic violence in our country.”
Elliott: What do you think of the way the league has handled it, weathered it and looked ahead?
Witten: “They were all disappointed in the way it all went down in the last couple weeks. I thought Commissioner Goodell did a good job of standing up and owning it and saying ‘we made a mistake.’ I think as players, obviously mistakes were made. But, at the same time, you’re in the spotlight and you have an obligation and responsibility as athletes. These have been dark days for the NFL, but (it’s) a game we love and I think there’s a lot of integrity inside the NFL. Not only in the league office, but players and coaches across this country that understand and respect the opportunity that they have. This league will be fine because falling back on the shoulders of the integrity of the men that make this game what it is.”
On the success of his career: “I could’ve never dreamed that it would turn into this. I always had high expectations for myself that maybe I could be a good player; maybe, possibly a great player. But I was just so focused on working hard and getting better and just trying to be an asset to a team and early on, getting drafted into this franchise, and trying to put one foot in front of the other and become a better football player.”
On nearing 10,000 yards and becoming third TE ever to hit that mark: “I’m humbled just to hear that. You think of Shannon Sharpe and Tony Gonzalez, they’re two of the greatest ever to play the game. It’s a humbling experience to think when you come into the league that maybe one day you’d have a chance to join that group.”
On how important a Super Bowl is to him: “It’s everything. It’s what motivates me every day. You look back and say the last three years playing in Week 17 for the division and coming up short each year to a different divisional opponent – it’s tough…When you play for this franchise, they’re out to get you and they want to beat you. You have to be your best when your best is needed and that’s what we’re trying to create right now.”
On the motivation that comes from criticism: “I don’t think that people think we’re a very good football team. For us, after the last three years coming up short, there’s been a mindset of we haven’t played good enough at key times to win and compete.”
—FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA—
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