FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, December 31st, 2013
NFL WILD CARD SATURDAY DOUBLEHEADER ON NBC FEATURES CHIEFS–COLTS AND SAINTS–EAGLES
Coverage Begins with Football Night In America at 4 p.m. ET
Chiefs – Colts at 4:30 p.m. ET
Saints – Eagles at 8 p.m. ET
Former New Orleans DB Steve Gleason To Serve as Saints-Eagles Social Media Analyst & Will Live Tweet Using Eye-Tracking Technology
NBC Sports Live Extra to Live Stream Chiefs – Colts and Saints – Eagles
NFL Turning Point Airs Tomorrow Night at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN
13th Annual U.S. Army All-American Bowl Saturday at 1 p.m. ET on NBC
Stamford, Conn. – December 31, 2013 – NBC Sports will kick off its coverage of the 2013 NFL playoffs with a Wild Card doubleheader on Saturday featuring the Kansas City Chiefs (11-5) – Indianapolis Colts (11-5) at 4:30 p.m. ET, and the New Orleans Saints (11-5) – Philadelphia Eagles (10-6) at 8 p.m. ET. Both games will also be live streamed online via NBC Sports Live Extra. NBC and NBC Sports Live Extra’s NFL Wild Card coverage on Saturday begins at 4 p.m. ET with a special 30-minute edition of Football Night In America.
Football Night In America, the most-watched pre-game show in sports, is hosted by 25-time Emmy Award-winner Bob Costas, who will report from Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pa. Costas will be joined on-site by two time Super Bowl winner and Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward.
Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from NBC’s famed Studio 8H at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Patrick will be joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, Peter King of Sports Illustrated, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk on NBCSN and NBCSports.com, and longtime NFL front office veteran and former NFL Executive of the Year Scott Pioli.
In the early game, Andrew Luck and the Colts host Alex Smith and the Chiefs at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. The Colts enter the playoffs on a three-game win streak, having recently beat the Chiefs in Week 16 by a score of 23-7. The Chiefs finished the regular season with an overtime loss on the road against the Chargers this past Sunday, but Kansas City still holds the best record on the road in the NFL this season (6-2). Veteran play-by-play announcer Dan Hicks will be in the booth, joined by analyst Mike Mayock and reporter Alex Flanagan.
In the late game, Nick Foles and the Eagles will host Drew Brees and the Saints at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pa. The Eagles made it into the playoffs after a thrilling victory on the road this past Sunday in a win-or-go-home contest against the Cowboys. The Saints have a better overall record than the Eagles this season, and are coming off a 42-17 win at home against the Buccaneers, but are 3-5 on the road in 2013.
Coverage of Saints-Eagles will begin at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. Calling Saints-Eagles is seven-time Emmy Award-winner Al Michaels (play-by-play), who will be joined by 14-time Emmy Award-winner Cris Collinsworth, and Emmy Award-winning sideline reporter Michele Tafoya.
NBC Sports’ coverage of the AFC Wild Card game at 4:30 p.m. ET will be led by Notre Dame on NBC and Emmy Award-winning coordinating producer Rob Hyland and director Pierre Moossa. Coverage of the NFC Wild Card game at 8 p.m. ET will be led by Sunday Night Football and Emmy Award-winning coordinating producer Fred Gaudelli and Emmy Award-winning director Drew Esocoff. Sunday Night Football has won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Sports Series for five consecutive years. In addition, NBC’s Sunday Night Football on-air and production team have a combined 40 Emmy Awards.
CHIEFS – COLTS PREVIEW
“Kansas City showed great heart against the Chargers to play the way that they did, but Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts right now have been playing as well as anybody. Going into Kansas City, I know how tough that is to try and go in there and get a win. The fact that the Colts have that one under their belt is going to really way in their favor.” – Cris Collinsworth
“Andy Reid has got to figure out a way to put pressure on Andrew Luck. Luck is going to be the offense. Kansas City’s got to get pressure to stop them. I like Indy at home. I think Luck has a field day.” – Tony Dungy
“If you look at Indianapolis, they’re an OK team…But I truly believe that Indy, with that previous win (against Kansas City), it actually hurt them because now Kansas City is very familiar with them. They (Kansas City) are going to come in and they’re going to beat them.” – Rodney Harrison
EAGLES – SAINTS PREVIEW
“I can’t wait to watch the New Orleans Saints against the Philadelphia Eagles. Rob Ryan is one of those defensive coordinators that will do anything. Chip Kelly calling the plays for the Philadelphia Eagles is one of those guys that will do anything. We’re going to get a whole lot of ��we’ll do anything’ calls in that game and it will be exciting as anything we have seen all year.” – Cris Collinsworth on Saints – Eagles
“Those Philly fans…they can’t wait, they hope it snows so they can throw snowballs at Drew Brees and that dome offense. How is New Orleans going to function on the road in Philadelphia? I think it’s going to be tough for New Orleans. A lot of points, but Philly outscores them.” – Tony Dungy
“I think it’s something mental. I just believe that they don’t believe they can win on the road, like you said, in those conditions, snowballs, or whatever the conditions are…I think it’s over. That (Eagles) defense is a lot better than we give credit to.” – Rodney Harrison
Click here for video of Dan Patrick, Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison previewing NBC’s wild card matchups that will feature the Chiefs – Colts and Saints – Eagles. http://www.nbcsports.com/football/nfl/previewing-wild-card-sat-nbc
NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA
For the second consecutive season, both Wild Card Saturday games on NBC will be streamed live online. NBC Sports Live Extra, NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops and tablets, will stream both games. The video stream will come directly from NBC’s broadcast of Chiefs – Colts and Saints – Eagles, and will include additional camera angles and interactive features.
NBC Sports Live Extra employs a full HD-quality player, which includes a draggable picture-in-picture feature for any of the online-only cameras, plus full DVR functionality, allowing the user to pause, scroll back-and-forth, and review plays in slo-motion.
In addition, online coverage features in-game analysis from the Football Night In America team as well as fantasy tips from Rotoworld fantasy experts.
For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app for tablets is available at the App Store for iPad and iPod touch, and on select tablet devices within Google Play.
In addition to NBC’s coverage of the two Wild Card games and Football Night In America, NBC Sports Group’s NFL coverage also includes digital content and social media extensions that are available online, as well as NFL-related shoulder programming on NBCSN.
DIGITAL AND SOCIAL COVERAGE
NBC Sports Group is utilizing its wide array of digital and social assets to provide fans with more behind-the-scenes content than ever before. NBC Sports Group’s NFL coverage this weekend will include continued comprehensive coverage via NBC Sports Group’s social media channels. Click here for full details of NBC Sports Group’s digital and social coverage.
On Saturday @SNFonNBC will promote a guest player who will live tweet during the Saints –Eagles game on NBC. Steve Gleason @TeamGleason, the former Saints defensive back and special teams player who is currently battling Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), will serve as the guest player. Gleason memorably blocked a punt early in the Saints emotional first game back at the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina and continues to inspire through Team Gleason. Gleason tweets with his eyes, using eye-tracking technology to type.
NFL TURNING POINT – WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT 7 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
Wild Week 17 finishes, including “win-and-in” scenarios in the NFC North and NFC East, highlight this week’s episode of NFL Turning Point, on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
NFL Turning Point, hosted by Football Night In America’s Dan Patrick, examines last week’s matchups that saw the Packers and Eagles punch their tickets to the postseason, while the Bears and Cowboys faltered at home with their respective divisions on the line.
NFL Turning Point begins with the Packers and Bears from Soldier Field in Chicago, with the NFC North title hanging in the balance. The episode highlights QB Aaron Rodgers’ return to the Green Bay lineup after missing the past seven weeks due to injury, and studies his slow start to the game, in which he threw two interceptions on the Packers’ first two possessions.
The program shows how Rodgers found his rhythm in the second half to keep Green Bay in striking distance of Chicago, despite two touchdowns from Bears RB Matt Forte in the third quarter. NFL Turning Point will dive deep into the game’s final drive, where the Packers converted three fourth-down situations, capped by Rodgers’ fourth-and-eight touchdown throw to WR Randall Cobb in the final minute of the game.
This week’s episode of NFL Turning Point also focuses on the Eagles’ 24-22 victory over the Cowboys to win the NFC East. The program highlights how Cowboys QB Kyle Orton utilized TEs Jason Witten and Gavin Escobar in the offense, and how the Dallas defense applied pressure on Eagles QB Nick Foles to keep the Cowboys in the game. NFL Turning Point will examine CB Brandon Boykin’s interception of Orton late in the game to clinch the division for Philadelphia.
The program will also feature audio from Chargers QB Philip Rivers from San Diego’s 27-24 overtime win over Kansas City, propelling the Chargers into the postseason.
NBC SPORTS GROUP NFL PROGRAMMING
In addition to NFL Turning Point, NBC Sports Group boasts a wide array of NFL programming each week that will highlight topical NFL news, provide in-depth coverage of each week’s biggest games, and deliver expert analysis of the fantasy football world.
PRO FOOTBALL TALK – WEEKNIGHTS AT 5:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
Pro Football Talk, NBCSN’s daily NFL studio show co-hosted by Mike Florio and Erik Kuselias, provides all-encompassing coverage of the NFL, including the most current news and analysis, engaging features, thought-provoking debates, and interviews with a wide array of NFL newsmakers. The show regularly features a roster of NBC Sports football commentators, including Rodney Harrison, Hines Ward, Doug Flutie, Ross Tucker, Peter King, and Scott Pioli.
FANTASY FOOTBALL LIVE – TUESDAYS & THURSDAYS AT 6:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN
Building off of Yahoo! Sports’ popular Sunday live streaming show, Fantasy Football Live on NBCSN combines the best fantasy football expertise from Yahoo! Sports and NBC Sports. Hosted by NBC Sports’ Erik Kuselias, Fantasy Football Live features a mix of Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and Rotoworld fantasy experts, including NBC Sports’ Shaun King, and Yahoo! Sports’ Brad Evans and Brandon Funston. Yahoo! Sports’ Melanie Collins will host the digital show. Rotoworld’s Kay Adams will be a regular contributor for the show across both platforms. A subsequent, digital-only version of Fantasy Football Live is available from 7-7:30 p.m. ET through video-on-demand across web and mobile devices on both Yahoo! Sports and NBCSports.com. Click here for more information on Fantasy Football Live.
NBC SPORTS RADIO
NBC Sports Radio will surround the NFL playoffs with daily coverage on 339 radio affiliates, highlighted by McNabb and Malone; an all-sports show that leverages the unique perspective of two former NFL quarterbacks, and Safety Blitz with Rodney Harrison; featuring three-time All Pro and two-time Super Bowl-winner Rodney Harrison.
NBC SPORTS REGIONAL NETWORKS
NBC Sports Regional Networks, which serve top NFL markets such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington DC, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston and San Francisco, will surround the NFL playoffs with in-depth news, analysis and original programming in more than 50 million U.S. households.
VIEWERSHIP
NBC’s Sunday Night Football averaged 21.7 million viewers for the 2013 NFL season to rank as the No. 1 show in primetime for the fourth consecutive fall TV season. For the past two years, Sunday Night Football ranked as the No. 1 show for the entire primetime television season (September-May, based on Nielsen live plus same day data), and it is on pace to achieve that milestone for a third year in a row.
For the primetime television season (9/23/13-12/29/13), Sunday Night Football ranks as the most-watched show (persons 2+), the highest-rated show, and the No. 1 program across the key demographics of Adults 18-49, 18-34, 25-54 as well as Men 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54 and Women 18-34 and 18-49.
Last week’s “win-and-in” SNF game for the NFC East title, featuring the Philadelphia Eagles’ down-to-the-wire 24-22 victory over the Dallas Cowboys was the most-watched primetime game in 2013 averaging 27.4 million viewers and also posted the week’s highest primetime rating (15.5/25) and Adult 18-49 rating (9.3).
For additional details on SNF ratings for the 2013 season click here.
NBC’S NFL WILD CARD SATURDAY TV AND STREAMING SCHEDULE
Football Night In America 4 p.m. ET NBC & NBC Sports Live Extra
Kansas City Chiefs – Indianapolis Colts 4:30 p.m. ET NBC & NBC Sports Live Extra
New Orleans Saints – Philadelphia Eagles 8 p.m. ET NBC & NBC Sports Live Extra
U.S. ARMY ALL-AMERICAN BOWL SATURDAY AT 1 P.M. ET ON NBC
Ninety of the nation’s top high school football players take the field in a classic East vs. West match up at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Colts QB Andrew Luck, Vikings RB Adrian Peterson, Ravens DT Haloti Ngata and Lions DT Ndamukong Suh are some of the famous alumni of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, the nation’s premier high school football all-star game, which plays its 13th contest this Saturday at 1 p.m. ET live on NBC. Game day coverage begins with a live, on-site pre-game show at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
Paul Burmeister will call the action with former NFL defensive lineman Anthony Herron providing analysis. Also providing commentary are reporters Lewis Johnson and Marty Snider from the sidelines. In addition, Barton Simmons, the high school player scout and insider, and Ross Tucker will contribute to NBC’s coverage of the game.
During the broadcast of the game, Johnson and Snider will interview select members of each team as the players announce the universities they will be attending and playing for next year.
In addition, NBCSN will provide coverage of the Skills Challenge on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET.
–NBC SPORTS GROUP–