FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, September 25th, 2022
NOTES & QUOTES FROM WEEK 3 EDITION OF FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA ON NBC AND PEACOCK
“I think Philadelphia is the best team in football right now.” – Jason Garrett
“You’re down eight points, you’re going to score a touchdown, you’ve got to have your two-point play called already!” – Tony Dungy on Buccaneers’ delay of game penalty prior to two-point conversion try
“Can we stop talking about whether he can throw the ball down the field? Can we silence that?” – Chris Simms on Lamar Jackson
“The league and the union will work together and talk with the doctors and Tua Tagovailoa, and they’ll come to a conclusion on whether the policy was followed.” – Mike Florio on the upcoming investigation into Tua Tagovailoa’s injury today
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STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 25, 2022 – NBC Sports’ presentation of Week 3 of the 2022 NFL season began tonight from Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., with Football Night in America leading into coverage of 49ers-Broncos on Sunday Night Football on NBC and Peacock.
Maria Taylor hosted FNIA from NBC Sports’ Studio 1 in Stamford, Conn. She was joined by Hall of Fame head coach Tony Dungy, former NFL quarterback Chris Simms, former NFL head coach Jason Garrett, fantasy sports industry pioneer Matthew Berry, and NFL Insider Mike Florio. Two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison joined co-host Jac Collinsworth at the site of the game.
Mike Tirico (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst), Melissa Stark (sideline reporter) and Terry McAulay (rules analyst) are calling tonight’s game. Tirico also reported from the field during FNIA.
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Following are highlights from tonight’s edition of Football Night in America on NBC and Peacock:
ON 49ERS
Harrison spotlighting the 49ers offensive physicality with WR Deebo Samuel, TE George Kittle and OT Trent Williams: “The San Francisco 49ers will always have a chance because they play a physical brand of football.”
Tirico on QB Jimmy Garoppolo’s hectic year with the team so far: “He comes in last week when Trey Lance gets hurt and leads the team to victory. Now it’s a deep breath, exhale, unpack, and you’re staying for a while. He’ll be the quarterback for the Niners, if he stays healthy, all the way through the season.”
Jac Collinsworth: “Let’s call it what it is. Jimmy G’s a winner.”
Football Night also showcased the artwork of Rita Oak (@ritaoak_art), who has vowed to make a drawing of QB Jimmy Garoppolo every day until he is traded. Click here to see some of her work.
ON BRONCOS
Taylor: “I honestly wish that we could show you all those slick highlights of the Broncos offense, but the reality is they’ve only scored two touchdowns through 18 offensive drives.”
Dungy: “I think they’re still getting used to Russell Wilson and one of the things they can do is use him more outside of the pocket.”
Garrett on how to defend Wilson: “If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times. Keep him in the pocket. Make him throw the ball on time. Don’t let him get out in space.”
Dungy on being a first-time head coach who also acts as a play-caller like Nathaniel Hackett: “That first-year coaching is just like being a rookie quarterback. The game is happening fast, it slows down eventually. Making those decisions, especially early in your career, is tough and I wasn’t even calling the plays.”
Garrett: “They’re two full-time jobs. Head coach is a full-time job and the same thing for an offensive coordinator. So, if you’re doing both, you need help with each of them…during the week and during the game…If you get locked into what are you calling on third-and-seven, sometimes those head coaching responsibilities get out of your mind. You need to get your systems in place, structures in place, how you communicate.”
ON BILLS-DOLPHINS
Florio on the upcoming investigation into Tua Tagovailoa’s injury: “Here’s how the concussion protocol works. We saw the head hit the ground; the key was the wobble when he got up. The league calls that gross motor instability. That means to go straight to the locker room for an evaluation by the team physician and the unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant. If they find that that wobble, that instability, has a neurological cause, the player does not return. Here, they found it was the result of a back injury that happened earlier in the game, so he was cleared to come back and play. Now, the NFL Players Association has already launched an investigation. The league and the union will work together and talk with the doctors, Tua Tagovailoa and they’ll come to a conclusion on whether the policy was followed. It will take a week or two and if they disagree, there could be a grievance or arbitration, but under the concussion protocol, they have always come to an agreement whether or not the policy was or was not followed. We’ll find out if that was the case here.”
Taylor on lopsided stats in favor of Bills: “Let’s talk about the Dolphins’ resilience. Check out that time of possession (40:40 – 19:20 in favor of Buffalo). If this game was played on paper, you can see that the Bills would have won.”
Garrett: “90 offensive plays and you lose? 90-39, it was incredible, and a lopsided time of possession. But let’s give the Dolphins credit. If you think about their three wins this year, they’ve won different ways. And the best teams that I’ve been around, you find a way to win.”
Dungy to Garrett: “You were talking about Buffalo earlier being a little too Josh Allen-centric and making him make too many plays. Miami played well. Buffalo missing a lot of guys on defense, but I thought the defense held up. The offense just really didn’t finish off some drives.”
Garrett: “Josh Allen is spectacular. Just an unbelievable player. But they need to balance this thing out a little bit more and spread that burden around.”
ON EAGLES
Garrett: “I think Philadelphia is the best team in football right now.”
Simms on QB Jalen Hurts: “This guy is playing like one of the best quarterbacks in football. Beautiful down the field thrower, we know his ability to run. Along with that (Philadelphia) roster, Eagles are flying high right now.”
Garrett on DL Fletcher Cox: “I feel like I’ve spent my life trying to block Fletcher Cox (laughter). And he’s still doing it. It’s unbelievable how good this guy is.”
ON BUCCANEERS
Dungy on delay of game penalty prior to two-point conversion attempt: “You’re down eight points, you’re going to score a touchdown, you’ve got to have your two-point play called already!”
ON RAVENS
Simms on QB Lamar Jackson: “He’s special…Lamar today was the team once again. Just doing everything.”
Dungy on Jackson’s improved pocket passing: “That to me has been the big difference, throwing these tight balls in tight windows from the pocket.”
Garrett on Jackson: “This is a special player. To me, he’s the NFL’s version of Aaron Judge. Aaron Judge said, ‘I’m not signing a contract; I’m just going to hit 62 home runs (currently at 60).’ This guy didn’t sign the contract either, just five touchdowns every week.”
Simms on Jackson: “Can we stop talking about whether he can throw the ball down the field? Can we silence that?”
ON RAMS
Garrett on Aaron Donald’s 100th career sack: “I spent a day with the Rams during training camp and talked to Matthew Stafford. He said there were days at practice where they couldn’t run offensive plays because Aaron Donald would just simply disrupt. He’s the best there is…He’s an elite player.”
ON PATRIOTS
Dungy on the impact of the injury to QB Mac Jones: “The coaching staff is trying to get used to Mac Jones and what he can do with as the new play-caller and now you may have another quarterback.”
Garrett: “I talked to Coach (Bill) Belichick this summer. He said this is a new offense. The offense they’ve had for 20 years is Tom Brady’s offense. They want to make it Mac Jones’ offense. So, if he’s not in the lineup, there’s going to be some real interesting questions up there in New England.”
ON JAGUARS
Simms: “They’re young and explosive on the defensive line. They make a lot of plays…Jacksonville – young and learning how to win. They can be scary in the AFC.”
Dungy: “Two of my ex-players are on that Jags coaching staff and they said Doug Pederson has brought the maturity they’ve needed.”
ON BEARS
Garrett on Justin Fields and the Bears rushing game: “He made a lot of big plays with his feet in addition to those runners getting things going. That’s how they’re going to win games…That’s the formula.”
Dungy: “Get used to it Bears fans — this is how they’re going to play.”
ON TITANS
Garrett on RB Derrick Henry: “He’s their best player. The formula for winning in Tennessee is simple: give him the ball…That’s why they’ve been a playoff team. So much comes off of that, a lot of big plays running the football. Then you get all these guys around the line of scrimmage and the play action game comes alive.”
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Peacock Sunday Night Football Final, an NFL post-game show produced by NBC Sports, streams exclusively on Peacock following every Sunday Night Football game during the 2022 season. Tonight’s show is hosted by NBC Sports commentators Ahmed Fareed and Chris Simms, who will provide instant reactions to each Sunday game along with highlights and interviews. Football Night in America commentators Jac Collinsworth and Harrison will also provide recaps and insights into the day’s biggest moments from the site of each week’s SNF game, and Mike Florio will provide injury and news updates. Matthew Berry will also join the show to provide advice and an early look at the fantasy waiver wire.
— Football Night in America —
