FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, December 14th, 2014
BOB COSTAS INTERVIEWS EAGLES RB LESEAN MCCOY; JOSH ELLIOTT SPEAKS WITH COWBOYS WR DEZ BRYANT ON NBC’S “FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA
“I’ll make sure if he wins the (rushing) title, I’ll send him the belt.” – LeSean McCoy on matching up against Cowboys RB DeMarco Murray
“I want those guys to know that you’ve got a fan here on the sideline.”– Dez Bryant on being vocal with his teammates
STAMFORD, Conn. – Dec. 14, 2014 – For tonight’s Week 15 edition of NBC’s Football Night In America, the most-watched studio show in sports, Bob Costas interviews Philadelphia Eagles RB LeSean McCoy, and Josh Elliott speaks with Dallas Cowboys WR Dez Bryant. Football Night will also preview NBC’s Sunday Night Football matchup between the Eagles and Cowboys, and include highlights, analysis and reaction to earlier Week 15 games.
Football Night airs each Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on NBC, with Costas hosting the program live from inside the stadium. He will be joined on site by Sunday Night Football analyst Cris Collinsworth, sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, NBC NFL analyst Hines Ward, and Elliott.
Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from NBC Sports Group’s Studio 1, and is 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 will report from Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Calif., on the Broncos-Chargers game.
INTERVIEWS: Below are excerpts from Costas’ interview with McCoy, and Elliott’s interview with Bryant. If used, please note the mandatory credit: “In an exclusive interview airing tonight on Football Night in America.”
LESEAN MCCOY WITH BOB COSTAS
McCoy on matching up against Cowboys RB DeMarco Murray: “I’ll make sure if he wins the (rushing) title, I’ll send him the belt. Any competitive player looks across the field and wants to beat your position out, and feel like you can give your team the edge.”
McCoy on his unique cutback ability: “It’s just something I feel. I never predetermine if I’m going to do it or not. It’s my gift and curse. I’ve been blessed to do it and be successful with it for so long, that sometimes I try to do it and get a big loss. Then Chip (Kelly) is pissed.”
McCoy on the Eagles’ high-speed offense: “I feel like the whole game is like that. People don’t think we get tired, but I get tired. The mindset is that the defense is a lot more tired than we are, and that’s our advantage. The only difference is that the referees kind of slow us down.”
McCoy to Costas on his career success playing on Sunday Night Football: “It’s all about you. I don’t want to disappoint you (laughing). I think good players show up in big games, and I think Sunday night is one of the biggest stages to play on.”
DEZ BRYANT WITH JOSH ELLIOTT
Bryant on his chemistry with Cowboys QB Tony Romo: “Off the field, it’s not just about football. We know one another, we talk family with one another, we go out to eat with one another. I think that’s how you build that chemistry.”
Elliott to Bryant on his animated nature on the sideline: “Tony (Romo) has said that when we watch you on TV, one might think you’re ripping into a teammate. But when we hear you, when you’re mic’d for sound, it’s actually exactly the opposite.”
Bryant: “I want those guys to know that you’ve got a fan here on the sideline. As soon as you make that stop, as soon as you do something good, I want to be around and congratulate you. I want you to see that I’ve got your back and I’m here 100 percent.”
Bryant on the Cowboys’ 33-10 loss to the Eagles on Thanksgiving Day: “They were ready. They were more prepared. We watched the film. We saw a lot of things that we could have done differently. We’re going to fix those things, and it should be a very different ballgame.”
Bryant on importance of tonight’s game: “We just have to take advantage of the opportunity. We’ve got to stay together, work hard, and if we do what we need to do, I think we’ll come out on top.”
–FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA–
