“You can’t depend on special teams touchdowns and blocked punts every week to win.” – Rodney Harrison on Eagles, who play Giants on NBC next Sunday
“They have a chance in Seattle because of the way they’re playing.” – Tony Dungy on the Cowboys, who play the Seahawks next week
“This is their identity. Just physically beating people up.” – Harrison on 49ers
STAMFORD, Conn. – October 5, 2014 – Following are highlights from NBC’s Football Night in America, the most-watched studio show in sports. Bob Costas opened the show live from inside Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. 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 NFL Insider Peter King. Alex Flanagan reported from Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on the Cardinals-Broncos game.
Elliott interviewed Cincinnati Bengals DT Devon Still, who spoke about his four-year-old daughter’s battle with cancer, while Harrison went one-on-one with New England Patriots CB Darrelle Revis.
In honor of the NFL’s efforts for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Elliott introduced a segment about Beth Steele, a mother of four who credits the NFL’s efforts to helping her catch her own cancer. For more on the story, click here: http://www.today.com/health/
Following are highlights from Football Night in America:
ON NFC EAST
Dungy: “A couple of weeks ago, I’m thinking bad (division). But big wins by the Eagles, Giants and the Cowboys today, the NFC East is back.”
ON COWBOYS
Dungy on if he is buying into the Cowboys: “I am because of the way they’re playing…the focal point now is DeMarco Murray. And when he’s running like this…it creates one-on-one coverage (for the receivers).”
Harrison on Terrance Williams: “He has proven that he is a great complement to Dez Bryant. He can make the big plays…he is a tremendous young player.”
Patrick to Dungy: “They go to Seattle next week. You’ve said if you can run the ball, you can win in Seattle.”
Dungy: “They have a chance in Seattle because of the way they’re playing.”
ON EAGLES
Dungy: “They still have some issues. Their defense is not great and when they get these leads like this, you have to be able to run the ball, and they’re still not running it that well. McCoy was better today, but not great.”
Harrison: “If you’re the Eagles, you can’t depend on special-teams touchdowns and blocked punts every week to win.”
ON 49ERS
Dungy: “Back to what they do best: physical on defense and very physical on offense. When they run Frank Gore and play that physical style, they’re tough to beat.”
Harrison: “This is their identity. Just physically beating people up, slowing down those pass rushers, and just allowing Frank Gore to do what he does best.”
ON SAINTS
Dungy: “I’m still not sold. We’re used to seeing dominant performances at home. That defense still has some holes. I think that’s affecting Drew Brees right now. I think he is pressing, feeling like he’s got to make too many things happen because of that defense.”
Harrison on Brees: “He doesn’t trust the defense.”
ON LIONS
Dungy: “You see how valuable Calvin Johnson is. They aren’t able to run the ball when he’s not in there drawing double coverage.”
ON RAIDERS
Florio: “Keep an eye on former Seahawks and Packers coach Mike Holmgren. He was in the building this week and has a tie to general manager Reggie McKenzie. And Holmgren has suggested that maybe he’s ready to coach again.”
Harrison: “You need a quarterback. Forget a head coach.”
ON JETS
Harrison on who he would start at QB: “I don’t know. They both looked terrible today.”
ON PATRIOTS
Harrison: “We heard about the fault of the offensive line and receivers not creating separation, but (Tom) Brady has to take a lot of that blame because he’s missing opportunities down the field. He’s not taking shots. He doesn’t look very confident behind that offensive line. But also Josh McDaniels. I don’t see a lot of great in-game adjustments. It’s easy when things are going well. He needs to step up and do a better job from a coaching standpoint.”
Dungy on Brady: “I could coach (against him) if I only had to defend 15 yards, and you only have to defend them so tight because his offensive line is not giving him great protection. It’s tough for him to get the ball up the field. He doesn’t have a lot of time and he doesn’t have deep receivers who can get up field. So the field is squeezed. Everyone is playing him like they’re in the red zone. I don’t think it’s Tom Brady’s fault. I think it’s his supporting cast.”
Harrison on if Darrelle Revis is the best cornerback: “He’s the best, but you have to play him a certain way. You just can’t play him one way. And the one thing that I asked him, I said, ‘Are you used to playing a lot of zone coverage?’ He said, ‘No, my entire life I’ve played nothing but man-to-man coverage, high school, college, and in the pros.’ I asked him, ‘What was the biggest difference between Rex Ryan’s defense and Bill Belichick’s defense?’ He said, ‘We play a lot more zone in New England.’ But you negate everything that he does and what makes him special if you play zone coverage.”
Dungy: “Lovie Smith inherited Revis in Tampa and he told me, ‘I traded him because I’d be wasting him. With our system, we play zone coverage so much.’ You’re not using his skills.”
DEVON STILL WITH JOSH ELLIOTT
Tonight’s episode of Football Night included a feature piece on Bengals DT Devon Still, whose four-year-old daughter Leah was diagnosed with Stage 4 neuroblastoma in June. The piece showed how Leah, who recently had her cancerous tumor removed but is not yet cancer free, has given inspiration to her father through her immense courage and strength.
Still on how he’s been inspired by his daughter: “You always expect your child to look up to you, but honestly, since June 2nd, I’ve really been looking up to my daughter…she’s way stronger than I’ve ever been. For her to be able to continue to smile through all of this, to have that same personality…it’s amazing, and it’s definitely inspiring to me.”
Still on how he initially responded to Leah’s cancer: “We just told her she had an illness that some kids get, and she was going to have to do whatever she could to fight and win. It was hard to focus on playing football, with my daughter 10 hours away…I couldn’t give football 100 percent.”
Still on the public’s support of Leah: “It’s done wonders for me. It’s done wonders for my daughter. Everybody’s keeping my daughter’s spirits up. I definitely appreciate all of the attention she’s getting. She’s a fighter.”
Following is the long-form feature between Josh Elliott and Devon Still. An abbreviated version aired on Football Night: http://www.nbcsports.com/
DARRELLE REVIS WITH RODNEY HARRISON
http://www.nbcsports.com/
On if QB Tom Brady’s performance has dropped this season: “He’s the same guy…he leads this team. We just need to support him.”
Rodney Harrison: “Does it serve as motivation when people doubt Darrelle Revis?”
Darrelle Revis: “No. It really doesn’t.”
Harrison: “As a fellow defensive back, that would motivate the heck out of me.”
Revis: “I look at it from a different point of view. My main focus is this team, not what outsiders have to say, or what people say on Twitter…I’m self-motivated. I know what I need to do.”
Revis on if he or Seahawks CB Richard Sherman is best in NFL: “You’ve got to believe in yourself. (Cleveland Browns CB) Joe Haden would say the same thing. (Arizona Cardinals CB) Patrick Peterson would say the same thing. I respect all of those guys, and they’re all great players…but like I said, everyone would say the same thing if they were asked – you’ve got to believe in yourself.”
—FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA—
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