FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 24th, 2018

DREW BREES & SAINTS VISIT KIRK COUSINS & VIKINGS ON NBC’S SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL IN REMATCH OF “MINNEAPOLIS MIRACLE” PLAYOFF GAME

Minnesota Defeated New Orleans, 29-24, in Thrilling NFC Divisional Playoff to Advance to NFC Championship Game

Vikings WR Adam Thielen Has Recorded At Least 100 Receiving Yards in Seven Consecutive Games

Mike Tirico Interviews Packers QB Aaron Rodgers on This Week’s Edition of The Mike Tirico Podcast

Coverage Begins with Football Night in America at 7 p.m. ET; New, Earlier 8:20 p.m. ET Kickoff Time for SNF

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports App to Live Stream All Sunday Night Football Games to Desktops, Tablets, Connected TVs, & Mobile Devices

STAMFORD, Conn. – Oct. 24, 2018 – NBC’s Sunday Night Football features a rematch of the “Minneapolis Miracle,” as Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints travel to Minneapolis, Minn., to face Kirk Cousins and the Vikings at a new, earlier SNF kickoff time of 8:20 p.m. ET, from U.S. Bank Stadium. Coverage begins with Football Night in America at 7 p.m. ET on NBC.

Last year’s New Orleans-Minnesota NFC Divisional Playoff became known as the “Minneapolis Miracle” after Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs’ scored a 61-yard touchdown as time expired to advance Minnesota to the NFC Championship game. It marked the first postseason game in NFL history to end with a winning touchdown on the final play of the fourth quarter. The Saints (5-1) and Vikings (4-2-1) enter the game in first place in their respective divisions.

Calling Saints-Vikings is Al Michaels (play-by-play), in his record 33rd season as the voice of the NFL’s premier primetime package; 16-time Emmy Award-winner Cris Collinsworth; and two-time Emmy Award-winning sideline reporter Michele Tafoya. This marks the 10th season that Michaels and Collinsworth will serve as the announce team in the NBC broadcast booth. In addition, three-time Super Bowl referee and SNF’s new rules analyst Terry McAulay will join Michaels and Collinsworth in the booth.

Brees, who threw two touchdown passes in New Orleans’ 24-23 win against Baltimore on Sunday, became the fourth player in NFL history with at least 500 career touchdown passes, joining Peyton Manning, Brett Favre and Tom Brady. With the victory, he became the third player to defeat all 32 teams in his career. Wide receiver Michael Thomas caught seven passes for 69 yards and one touchdown. He currently ranks fifth in the NFC in receptions with 53.

The Vikings defeated the Jets, 37-17, last Sunday as Cousins threw for 241 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Adam Thielen caught nine passes for 110 yards and one touchdown, tying Charley Hennigan as the only players in NFL history with 100-or-more receiving yards in each of his team’s first seven games of a season. Thielen currently leads the NFL outright in both receptions (67) and receiving yards (822).

Mike Tirico will host Football Night in America at 7 p.m. ET on NBC alongside Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, NFL insider Mike Florio and PFT Live co-host Chris Simms from NBC Sports’ International Broadcast Center in Stamford, Conn. Liam McHugh will co-host Football Night in America on-site from U.S. Bank Stadium.  

NBC’s coverage of Sunday Night Football is led by executive producer Fred Gaudelli and director Drew Esocoff.

NBCSPORTS.COM & NBC SPORTS APP TO LIVE STREAM ALL NBC NFL GAMES:

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app will stream all NBC games to desktops, tablets, mobile devices and connected TVs via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value to their subscription service, and making high-quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms. This marks the first season that NBC Sports is able to live stream to mobile devices and on PlayStation 4. The full HD-quality video stream will come directly from NBC’s broadcasts. Powered by Playmaker Media, the NBC Sports app is available on Apple iOS, Android and select Samsung devices, as well as on Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Win10, PlayStation and Xbox.

MIKE TIRICO INTERVIEWS PACKERS QB AARON RODGERS ON THE MIKE TIRICO PODCAST

Football Night in America host Mike Tirico interviewed Packers QB Aaron Rodgers for the latest episode of The Mike Tirico Podcast, which will publish on Thursday morning. Rodgers discusses his love of fishing and going off the grid, the importance of rectifying his relationship with Brett Favre, and his respect for Tom Brady has he continues to excel into his 40s. Rodgers and the Packers will face Brady and the Patriots next week on Sunday Night Football. The Mike Tirico Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Stitcher and podcasting apps.

Rodgers on his first time feeling embraced by the Packers fan base in 2008: “We played an 0-15 Lions team that we were expected to beat…we pulled away at the end and we were 6-10. I remember walking off the field and getting a big-time ovation. Still, to this day, it gives me the chills and sometimes will choke me up because I think about how it was difficult at times during that offseason and during the year. But that moment will always stay with me.”

Rodgers on rectifying relationship with Favre: “Now I consider him a close friend. We talk a bunch. I went down and visited with him a couple of days in the offseason…it was tough the first year. They draft this young kid from California. He’s 36 turning 37, not ready to retire, the strains that put on our relationship – now we can look back and have a lot better appreciation for each other, for me appreciating what he was going through, for him understanding what it was like to be 21 and play with one of your idols, and it’s been great to make up for lost time with Brett.”

Rodgers on Brady: “Tom and I have known each other for a long time now. He was always great to me as a young player. He’s a pioneer as far as how he takes care of his body and has been able to have sustained greatness late into his 30s and now into his 40s.”

Tirico: “Just please tell me that you don’t have a pair of the TB12 recovery pajamas.”

Rodgers: “No, no – I don’t wear pajamas.”

PETER KING’S NFL COLUMN “FOOTBALL MORNING IN AMERICA” DEBUTS EVERY MONDAY EXCLUSIVELY ON NBCSPORTS.COM

A new “Football Morning in America” will post every Monday morning exclusively on NBCSports.com. It was announced in May that King signed an exclusive agreement with NBC Sports Group that included writing a weekly Monday morning NFL column for NBCSports.com, making regular appearances on NBCSN’s and NBC Sports Radio’s PFT Live with Florio, and continuing to contribute to Football Night in America, the most-watched studio show in sports.


PFT LIVE
– WEEKDAYS AT 7 A.M. ET ON NBCSN

Mike Florio and co-host Chris Simms bring fans the latest NFL news and interviews with players and coaches every weekday morning with PFT Live on NBCSN at 7 a.m. ET. Peter King will also contribute regularly to PFT Live’s coverage throughout the regular season. In addition, on the mornings after games where rulings are a hot topic, McAulay will join Pro Football Talk on NBC Sports Radio and NBCSN.

The two-hour PFT Live 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. The program is a simulcast of NBC Sports Radio’s PFT Live national program that airs daily beginning at 6 a.m. ET.


SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
 SOCIAL MEDIA

  • SNF ON INSTAGRAM: Going into its seventh season, Sunday Night Football gives the SNF fan a look at photos through the filters of Instagram. Fans get a look around each SNF city, as well as access inside the production trucks, the locker rooms, on the field, and on the sideline, as our social media producer captures the best photos of Sunday night and posts in real time. Each week, SNF on Instagram will host Instagram Live interviews with Michele Tafoya and players from each team. In addition, SNF on Instagram will utilize Instagram stories to maximize fans’ exposure to the Sunday Night Football
  • SNF ON TWITTER: Using tweets, photos, and videos, @SNFonNBC provides unique content with SNF talent, production crew and NFL players. Additionally, Tafoya will provide real-time tweets from the sideline to provide followers with updates all game long.
  • SNF ON SNAPCHAT: For the second season, NBC Sports’ Snapchat account will be creating content on the platform at each Sunday Night Football game, including Kickoff and from the SNF The NBC Sports Snapchat account will take fans behind the scenes to the FNIA set and around cities where Sunday Night Football comes to town, utilizing lenses and filters to customize content specifically for the Snapchat audience.
  • SNF ON FACEBOOK: – At nearly 3.7 million likes strong, the Sunday Night Football Facebook page provides social-first stories, photos and video every week.

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL BUS RETURNS FOR 2018 NFL SEASON 

NBC Sports Group’s Sunday Night Football bus returns this season to travel the country, visiting the host cities of select Sunday Night Football games. The bus will bring the Vince Lombardi Trophy to various SNF locations, before arriving at its final destination in Week 17.

Fans will get a closer look at the behind-the-scenes action of SNF broadcasts on the bus, which will take fans from the field, to the studio and in the production trucks. Features of the bus include an interactive replica of the control room, an interactive player wall, a Carrie Underwood music experience, a replica of the Football Night in America desk, an area showcasing SNF’s new initiative with the Boys & Girls Clubs and more.

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 will give fans the opportunity to interact with America’s most-watched primetime television show with exclusive activities, memorabilia and a 55-inch monitor housing social media elements.

NBC SPORTS RADIO

NBC Sports Radio will surround the 2018 NFL season with daily coverage across more than 425 radio affiliates, highlighted by PFT Live, featuring NFL insider and Football Night In America commentator Mike Florio daily from 6-9 a.m. ET; the PFT PM podcast hosted by Florio, which takes a look back at the day that was in the NFL; Safety Blitz with Rodney Harrison and Dan Schwartzman; featuring three-time All Pro and two-time Super Bowl-winner Rodney Harrison; and more.

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, and San Francisco, will surround the 2018 NFL season with in-depth news, analysis and original programming on the teams that matter most in more than 40 million U.S. households.

NBC’S “SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL” IS PRIMETIME TELEVISION’S NO. 1 SHOW FOR UNPRECEDENTED SEVENTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR:

The last seven years of NBC’s Sunday Night Football (2011-17) have been history-making, as SNF has been primetime TV’s No. 1 show for an unprecedented seven consecutive seasons – breaking its tie with American Idol (six) for the most consecutive years atop the charts (since 1950), based on live plus same day data provided by Nielsen. Prior to 2011, a sports series had never been primetime television’s top show for a full season. Sunday Night Football has also ranked as the No. 1 show in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic for eight consecutive TV seasons.

2018 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
*Sun. Oct. 28 Week 8 New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings
*Sun. Nov. 4 Week 9 Green Bay Packers at New England Patriots
*Sun. Nov. 11 Week 10 Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles
*Sun. Nov. 18 Week 11  Pittsburgh Steelers at Jacksonville Jaguars
**Thurs. Nov. 22 Week 12 Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints
*Sun. Nov. 25 Week 12 Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings
*Sun. Dec. 2 Week 13 San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks
*Sun. Dec. 9 Week 14 Pittsburgh Steelers at Oakland Raiders
*Sun. Dec. 16 Week 15 Philadelphia Eagles at Los Angeles Rams
*Sun. Dec. 23 Week 16 Kansas City Chiefs at Seattle Seahawks
*Sun. Dec. 30 Week 17 TBD

*Flex Week

** Thanksgiving Night Game

FLEXIBLE SCHEDULING: Flexible scheduling will be used in Weeks 11-17. Additionally, in Weeks 5-10, flexible scheduling may be used in no more than two weeks. In Weeks 5-16, the schedule lists the games tentatively set for Sunday Night Football on NBC. Only Sunday afternoon games are eligible to be moved to Sunday night, in which case the tentatively scheduled Sunday night game would be moved to an afternoon start time. Flexible scheduling will not be applied to games airing on Thursday or Monday nights.

A flexible scheduling move would be announced at least 12 days before the game. For Week 17, the Sunday night game will be announced no later than six days prior to December 30. The schedule does not list a Sunday night game in Week 17, but an afternoon game with playoff implications will be moved to that time slot. Flexible scheduling ensures quality matchups in all Sunday time slots in those weeks and gives “surprise” teams a chance to play their way into prime time.

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—