FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, January 13th, 2016

AARON RODGERS AND GREEN BAY PACKERS VISIT CARSON PALMER AND ARIZONA CARDINALS IN NBC’S NFL DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF GAME THIS SAT., JAN. 16 AT 8 P.M. ET

Coverage Begins with Special Edition of Football Night In America at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC

NBC Sports Live Extra to Live Stream Packers-Cardinals

NBC UNIVERSO to Air Packers-Cardinals Divisional Playoff Game to Spanish-Language Homes

Seahawks-Vikings on NBC is Most-Watched Early Sunday NFL Wild Card Game On Record

Tonight’s Episode of NFL Turning Point at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN Highlights Steelers’ Comeback Win vs. Bengals

Pro Football Talk Weekdays at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN

STAMFORD, Conn. – January 13, 2016 – NBC Sports concludes its coverage of the 2015 NFL playoffs this Saturday, Jan. 16, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC with an NFC Divisional round matchup, when Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers (NFC North, 10-6) visit Carson Palmer and the Arizona Cardinals (NFC West, 13-3), at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. NBC’s NFL Divisional round coverage on Saturday begins at 7:30 p.m. ET with a special edition of Football Night In America.

The Packers return to Arizona to face the Cardinals less than three weeks after meeting in Week 16. The Cardinals defense sacked Aaron Rodgers eight times in the game and returned two of his fumbles for touchdowns en route to a 38-8 win on Dec. 27, clinching a first-round bye for Arizona.

The Cardinals are coming off their best regular season in franchise history. Carson Palmer had the best statistical regular season of his career, setting personal season records in passing yards (4,671), touchdowns (35), and passer rating (104.6). In addition, long-time Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald set a career-high with 109 receptions and surpassed 1,000 yards receiving in a season for the seventh time (1,215).

The Packers advanced to this weekend’s Divisional round game against the Cardinals following a 35-18 win against the Redskins in Washington on Wild Card weekend. Aaron Rodgers threw a pair of touchdown passes to WRs Randall Cobb and Davante Adams in the second quarter to erase an 11-0 deficit, and RBs James Starks and Eddie Lacy added a pair of touchdown runs in the second half to complete the comeback.

The Packers and Cardinals squared off in one of the wildest postseason games in recent history on Wild Card weekend in 2010, a 51-45 Cardinals overtime win in Arizona. In that game, Rodgers and Cardinals QB Kurt Warner combined for more than 800 yards passing and nine touchdowns, Fitzgerald had a pair of touchdown receptions, and Karlos Dansby returned a Rodgers fumble in overtime for a touchdown to give the Cardinals the win.

Calling Packers-Cardinals are seven-time Emmy Award-winner Al Michaels (play-by-play), in his record 30th season as the voice of the NFL’s premier primetime package; 16-time Emmy Award-winner Cris Collinsworth, who has won the Emmy for Outstanding Event Analyst in each of his six seasons in the Sunday Night Football booth; and two-time Emmy Award-winning sideline reporter Michele Tafoya.

NBC’s coverage of Sunday Night Football is led by Emmy Award-winning producer Fred Gaudelli and Emmy Award-winning director Drew Esocoff.

Football Night in America, the most-watched studio show in sports, is hosted by 26-time Emmy Award-winner Bob Costas, who will report from University of Phoenix Stadium. Costas will be joined on site by Collinsworth, Tafoya, and two-time Super Bowl winner Hines Ward.

Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from NBC Sports Group’s International Broadcast Center in Stamford, Conn., joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk on NBCSN and NBCSports.com.


NBC UNIVERSO TO TELEVISE PACKERS-CARDINALS IN SPANISH

NBC UNIVERSO airs its “La NFL en NBC UNIVERSO” telecast this weekend, presenting this weekend’s Packers-Cardinals Divisional playoff game in Spanish. Rene Giraldo, Edgar Lopez and Veronica Contreras will call the action for NBC UNIVERSO.

 

SEAHAWKS-VIKINGS ON NBC IS MOST-WATCHED EARLY SUNDAY NFL WILD CARD GAME ON RECORD

The Seattle Seahawks’ 10-9 down-to-the-wire victory over the Minnesota Vikings in last Sunday’s NFL Wild Card game on NBC averaged 35.3 million viewers to rank as the most-watched early Sunday Wild Card on record (People Meter history dates to 1988), according to Fast National data from The Nielsen Company.

Viewership for the Seahawks’ victory was up 25% from last year’s early Sunday Wild Card game (28.3 million for Bengals-Colts on CBS), and tops by 27% the last early Sunday NFC Wild Card game (27.7 million for Falcons-Giants, Jan. 8, 2012 on FOX). Viewership for Seahawks-Vikings, which was the third-coldest NFL game on record with a kickoff temperature of minus-six degrees, peaked at 43.9 million viewers for the game’s exciting finish from 3:45-4 p.m. ET.

The Seahawks-Vikings NFC Wild Card telecast (1:06-4:06 p.m. ET) earned a 21.0 rating/42 share, to rank as the highest-rated early Sunday Wild Card game in 21 years (22.0/48 for Patriots-Browns on NBC, 1/1/95). The 21.0/42 for Seahawks-Vikings is up 24% from last year’s early Sunday Wild Card (17.0/35 for Bengals-Colts). Click here for more info.

 

NBC SPORTS LIVE EXTRA

For the eighth consecutive season, NBC Sports will live stream the entire Sunday Night Football schedule. NBC Sports’ “TV Everywhere” live streaming product, NBC Sports Live Extra, will stream all SNF games to desktops, tablets and connected TVs. The full HD-quality video stream will come directly from NBC’s broadcast of SNF. (NOTE: NBC Sports Digital does not have NFL live streaming rights to mobile devices.)

For desktops, NBC Sports Live Extra can be accessed at NBCSports.com/liveextra. The NBC Sports Live Extra app is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store and Apple TV.


SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL DIGITAL COVERAGE

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL ALL-ACCESS: For the sixth straight season, and with a new look and feel, NBCSports.com is providing a destination for fans dedicated to behind-the-scenes and social media driven content of Sunday Night Football. SNF All-Access includes exclusive photos and videos of the Sunday Night Football production team, look-ins on SNF production meetings, Michele Tafoya’s “Ten With Tafoya” interviews with key NFL players, and conversations with SNF and FNIA talent.

Visit SNF All-Access at: http://snfallaccess.nbcsports.com/

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SOCIAL MEDIA: NBC Sports Group’s comprehensive social media coverage includes the Sunday Night Football Facebook page, providing exclusive behind-the-scenes SNF content and digital content from NBCSports.com, SNF All Access,  ProFootballTalk.com, and Rotoworld.com, @SNFonNBC, using tweets, photos, Vines and videos & real-time tweets from Michele Tafoya, and a look at SNF through the filters of Instagram.

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL BUS: NBC Sports Group’s all-new Sunday Night Football bus returns this season to travel the country visiting the Sunday Night Football host cities. The bus will arrive in each city two to three days prior to the game, making stops at local landmarks and events before heading to the game site. Once at the stadium, the Sunday Night Football bus brings fans from the field to the studio set, featuring football field decaling on the floor, a welcome reel with the SNF production team looking back on 10 years of SNF, and replica of the Football Night in America studio available for fan photos, complete with a GIF photo booth which takes a series of pictures and compiles them into a sharable GIF.  Fans can digitally follow the Sunday Night Football bus atNBCSports.com/FollowSNF.

“THE SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL:” For the fourth consecutive season NBC Sports will present the “Player of the Game Sunday Night Football,” a custom made football from Wilson, which will travel with the SNF crew all season long. At the end of each SNF game, the ball will be signed by the player of the game. Photos, video and stories around the “Player of the Game Sunday Night Football,” and its travels will live on Facebook, Twitter, NBCSports.com/FollowSNF, and SNFAllAccess.com.

For more information on Sunday Night Football’s comprehensive digital coverage, click here.


BEN ROETHLISBERGER AND STEELERS COMEBACK WIN AGAINST BENGALS HEADLINES WILD CARD EDITION OF NFL TURNING POINT TONIGHT AT 11:30 P.M. ET ON NBCSN

Tonight’s special 60-minute Wild Card edition of NFL Turning Point, debuting tomorrow at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, breaks down the Pittsburgh Steelers’ matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals; studies QB Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks’ dramatic come-from-behind victory against the Minnesota Vikings; reviews QB Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers’ win over the Washington Redskins; and analyzes the Kansas City Chiefs’ dominant performance against the Houston Texans.

Hosted by Football Night In America’s Dan Patrick, NFL Turning Point, co-produced by NFL Films, airs weekly throughout the entire NFL season, including the playoffs and Super Bowl.

Click here for more information on tonight’s episode.


PRO FOOTBALL TALK ON NBCSN WEEKNIGHTS AT 6 P.M. ET

Two-time Super Bowl champion and veteran Football Night In America studio analyst Rodney Harrison joins co-hosts Mike Florio and Paul Burmeister every weekday throughout the 2015 season on NBCSN’s Pro Football Talk.

Pro Football Talk airs weekdays at 6 p.m. ET. The 30-minute Pro Football Talk provides all-encompassing coverage of the NFL, including the most current news and analysis, thought-provoking debates, and interviews with a wide variety of NFL newsmakers.

Click here for more info on Pro Football Talk.


NBC SPORTS RADIO

NBC Sports Radio will surround the 2015 NFL season with daily coverage across more than 425 radio affiliates, highlighted by Safety Blitz with Rodney Harrison; featuring three-time All Pro and two-time Super Bowl-winner Rodney Harrison; the Amani Toomer and Dan Schartzman Show; and Pro Football Talk Live, featuring NFL insider and Football Night In America commentator Mike Florio.

To listen to a live stream of NBC Sports Radio, or find your local affiliate, visit www.NBCSportsRadio.com.


NBC SPORTS REGIONAL NETWORKS

NBC Sports Regional Networks, which serve top NFL markets such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Houston and San Francisco, will surround the 2015 NFL season with in-depth news, analysis and original programming on the teams that matter most in more than 50 million U.S. cable and satellite households.

Follow “Sunday Night Football” on Twitter @SNFonNBC

Follow NBC SportsTalk on Twitter @NBCSportsTalk

Become a fan of “Sunday Night Football” on Facebook at: Facebook.com/SNFonNBC

Visit SNF All-Access at: http://snfallaccess.nbcsports.com/

For more information about NBC Sports Group shows and properties, including press releases, photos, talent and executive bios and headshots, please visit NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com

–NBC SPORTS GROUP–