- SHARE
-
-
Thursday Night Football Pre/Postgame Media Call – 9/12
.png)
PRE/POST GAME CREW
PRESS CONFERENCE 09.12.22 TRANSCRIPT
Moderator
Hello everyone and thank you for joining us today on the very first ever Thursday Night Football Tonight pre-game media Zoom call. With us today, we have our Amazon's Vice President of Global Sports Video, Marie Donoghue, and we have our TNF Tonight crew for our pre-game and halftime and post-game shows, our host Charissa Thompson, and our analysts, Tony Gonzalez, Richard Sherman, and Ryan Fitzpatrick.
I'm going to throw it over to Marie, just to remind everyone, if you'd like to ask a question, please raise your hand in the queue and then we will call on everyone as they raise their hands. Now, I'm going to throw it over to Marie.
Marie Donoghue
Thanks Alana. And thank you all for joining us today. We are so excited for our first regular season game, just three days away, and we've assembled the best on-air crew in the business. We've been working around the clock the past few months and I can truly say that not only is this group incredibly talented, as you saw in our preseason game in Houston, but they are absolutely the best teammates we could ever hope to have.
It's a pleasure to be working alongside them and we can't wait to get started on Thursday. I know you'll have a lot of questions for them and I can guarantee they'll have a lot to say.
Moderator
Arnie Stapleton with the Associated Press is first up.
Arnie Stapleton
Hey, thanks for doing this, guys. I wanted to ask Ryan, Richard and Tony, seems more and more teams are deciding to sit their players for the preseason. That tends to make a little bit of a sloppy September. I'm just wondering if you could give me your thoughts on that. I know it didn't used to be that way, when you guys are playing, but now it's become the norm.
Richard Sherman
Well, I mean, I think it's them looking forward to having healthier players in September than they would when you're losing guys for the season in August, and you never get to put the best 22 out on the field that you had. I think people are more concerned about that. Obviously, it's less preseason game, so you don't get the third preseason game where you get to naturally put your starters out there for a little while. I think they're just not willing to risk guys for games that don't matter.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Yeah. I mean, I would add to that. It is funny though, because the Bills maybe played a little bit in the preseason, but certain teams don't seem to have a problem with it. Aaron Rogers is a guy, maybe if you're trying to write a story about it, that the last two years, he's adamant about not playing in the preseason and their first game has been really slow. Even just getting some of those young receivers and young guys on the field, so they're not so wide eyed during a regular season game. The problem is, it's worse than the joint practices.
It's not even really a game for guys that have played and the veterans. I think to Richard's point, the health and safety of the players is a lot more important than putting them in those situations, in the meaningless games. But I think it's a convenient excuse for some of these teams that don't start well.
Tony Gonzalez
Yeah. I'll agree with that. I've never been a big fan of the preseason schedule. I think you can come and you see guys that miss camp and come in and play lights out. I'm going to go with what Ryan said there. It's an excuse. And it takes time. It takes you a couple games to get your legs, because nobody in the preseason is playing a whole game anyway. At the most, you're going to play, unless you're trying to make the team ... but the established starters they're going to play maybe a quarter. Even back in my day, the most we play is that third preseason game, maybe a few plays into the second half, but that's still not a whole game. It's going to take time for guys to find their legs, to find that rhythm, to get back into the swing of things.
You'll see, like Aaron Rodgers, I'm not concerned with what happened yesterday. I'm sure it'll get figured out and he'll be back into top form over the next couple weeks.
Arnie Stapleton
Thank you.
Moderator
Next, we're going to go to Joe Reedy from the Associated Press.
Joe Reedy
Thanks for doing this. Marie, it's been an 18, 19-month process from winning the rights to getting off the ground, what's it like now that the week is finally here?
Marie Donoghue
It's incredibly exciting. Everyone keeps asking if we're nervous and we're not nervous, we're just ready to go. Joe, we've talked over some of those months and I can't reiterate enough how we think we've got the right team. We've got the right team on-air and we've got the right team behind the camera. When you've got the right team, you're just ready to get on the field.
Joe Reedy
And then Fitz, what was it like for you yesterday, since it's your first Sunday, since it seemed like the league was founded in 1920, that you weren't on the field.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Yeah, well I'm in Arizona as well, so I got up and Charissa was on my TV. Charissa, you did a great job. It was wonderful.
Charissa Thompson
What a nice teammate. Thank you.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Those first set of games I really enjoyed it just as a fan of football. When we got to the fourth quarter of those first set of games, it was absolutely wild just trying to figure out which game I wanted to watch with the games going to overtime and the last second drives and field goals. I really liked it. Part of it for me, because it was first time in 18 years, I could sit down on a Sunday and just enjoy football, enjoy opening day, and not have the pleasure or the stresses to be playing out there. It was fun to share with my family and just be able to sit down and be lazy for a day.
Joe Reedy
Sounds good. Thanks.
Moderator
Next up, we're going to go to my friend Richard Deitsch.
Richard Deitsch
Wow, friendship Alana. Very exciting to know that. This question is for Marie. Marie, one of the significant points of interest is your NFL package this season. And we've seen that in stories in Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, Sports Business Daily. Your people are quoted and asked about viewership. And there's even a lot of people who pause it that, if the viewership numbers are there, changes the entire business in terms of what people might think about inventory going to direct to consumer like Amazon is, you yourself were quoted saying this is a once-in-a-decade opportunity to create appointment viewing for tens of millions of fans. Given that, how important do you think game viewership is for Thursday night, specifically this singular game, where you can get an opportunity to create a narrative about your viewership?
Marie Donoghue
Yeah. Thank you, Richard. And, I consider you a friend too. Look, our number one focus is delivering the best broadcast for fans. And, we're thrilled with the quality of our production and from the reaction from fans, from our preseason game, it was overwhelmingly positive. You said it yourself, this is the start of an 11-year deal, of course we want the biggest audience possible. But this is a big change for fans, and we know it'll take some time. So, we're very comfortable with that. We're not overly focused with the first night. We are overly focused on our production and what we deliver for fans. We've got an incredibly high bar that we set for ourselves. So, we know this will evolve over time. And I still believe it's a once-in-a-generation... I now believe it's a once-in-a-generation opportunity. So, we're really excited. And look, the trends are all in our favor, and we're comfortable and excited about what we're going to put on the screen. So, not concerned at all.
Richard Deitsch
Thank you, Marie. Thank you for the friendship. And, hello to you, Charissa as well.
Marie Donoghue
Thanks Richard.
Charissa Thompson
Richard, I don't consider you a friend, but thank you. Kidding.
Richard Deitsch
Yes. Feeling's mutual Charissa. You're welcome.
Moderator:
Well. And next up we have Demetri Ravanos, from Barrett Sports Media.
Demetri Ravanos
Hey guys, thank you so much for doing this. Marie, sort of building off of Richard's question there. It was reported last month that you guys are going to be measured by Nielsen, in terms of audience. Arguably, streaming service could present more accurate numbers than Nielsen could. So, what is it they bring to you and how will the numbers they deliver for Thursday Night Football differ from traditional TV ratings?
Marie Donoghue
Right. So, that was actually pretty groundbreaking that we signed that deal with Nielsen, and we're excited to work with them. Nielsen brings currency. That's what the industry is used to. That's what advertisers are used to. We also obviously have first-party data, that we will bring to not only to our clients, but also to the measurements. So, this is an inaugural launch for Nielsen as well. So, we're very comfortable with having those numbers out there. And we're also very... I would also say this, the relationship with Nielsen will probably evolve as well, because this is groundbreaking for them. So, we're proud of what we're doing. We're excited to get the numbers out there. Obviously, reach is really important for us and for the NFL. So, it's important to have that currency out there. I do feel bad that I'm getting so many questions, guys. These guys are the best in the business. And I'm excited to have them talk to you guys. I'm always happy to answer questions, but I personally prefer to listen to these guys. But obviously we'll answer any questions you have, and thank you for that Demetri.
Demetri Ravanos
So, my follow up actually would be something that I'd love to hear all five of you talk about a little bit, and that is, that Ryan and Richard, and Andrew as well are coming right off the field into the broadcast booth. And I just wonder, what was the focus on getting some faces and some voices that we have not heard before, covering the NFL? And, Charissa and Tony for you guys, what is it like working with people that are brand new to the business, right off of the football field?
Tony Gonzalez
Well, I guess I'll go first. I think working with guy, the relationships that they bring, obviously they're fresh off the field, they know what's going on in the NFL. But I remember our first preseason run through that we had. You could see the guys, Richard and Ryan going up to guys that they used to, well, especially for Ryan, he played with everybody in the league. And going up and saying hello, and that will translate to television. And I remember when I first got off the field, it made my transition a lot easier that I was able to talk about guys that I had played it with, and gone against. And so, that's a huge advantage to have, and something that I think, that we all welcome.
Charissa Thompson
I would say, yes, to Tony's point. Being so close to the game, that is a huge plus. But for me as the host, it is so nice and, of course Fitz is our quarterback. The quarterback I guess, of the desk. And so, for me, it's nice to have rookies for lack of a better word, because of their willingness. They don't have these pre-fixed ideas of what TV should be or look like. And I don't want to say malleable, but they are so willing to learn and be open to those things. And, I couldn't ask for a more humble desk to begin with. Tony and I have had the luxury of working together before. But, my relationship with Richard and now with Fitz, it's just, I can't stress this enough, everybody wants to win. And for me taking that same philosophy from the field to the desk, is that we're all playing together, and we're all trying to bring out the best in one another. And so, for those two being straight off the field, it's more about the willingness and want to be great now at this new role in their lives.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Yeah. And I'll jump in and just say, it's been great. First of all, to have Charissa, because we would be lost without her. She is a true pro, and it's been a lot of fun just in the brief time we've had on-air, and some of the walkthroughs that we've done. Just to be able to do a segment, have something led by her, but then talk to her afterwards about it, and figure out what's right, what's wrong, here I felt awkward, here, what can I do better. And to lean on Tony as well, who's been through it and done it, and done it at multiple places. And just, listening to some of his wisdom, and his dad jokes. I mean, he's got plenty of dad jokes in the holster. He let one out a couple weeks ago, but looking forward for that and more to come. And with the Sherm stuff, we've got a budding bromance, I would call it.
I never really loved him as a player, because he was on the wrong side of the ball, and was really brash, and I was never teammates with him. And if you're not his teammate, you probably don't like him that much. But now that we're teammates, I absolutely love the guy. We've broken bread over waffles and chicken.
Richard Sherman
And chicken.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
We've had a lot of good conversations, kind of off-air. And I'm interested to see a lot of his perspectives from the defensive side of the ball, I think that's going to play really well.
Richard Sherman
And to just finish it off, I'm just grateful. I don't think I could have walked into a better situation with a better team of people on and off the camera. Behind the scenes, you got great producers, you got great people working in the trucks, who do a really great job for us. Obviously, Charissa, freaking making it really easy for all three of us, really to do our jobs when it's not going great or things aren't... She gives you the freedom to do as you please, because you know she's going to pick it up and she's going to save the day if you make a mistake. And so that's really comforting. The same with Tony. The experience that they have, and it gives you a different comfort level, just being out there with veteran crew and knowing that, hey, if I mess something up, it won't be the end of the world, it won't be a crazy big thing, that they can easily spin it and bring it back. And they have several times throughout rehearsals.
And, Fitz has mentioned our bromance, and that's been really, really cool, and a cool part of just working together and coming together as a team. Guys you competed against, and just getting to know them better, and getting to know the depth of their knowledge… knowledge of the game and their personality and their families and their kids. And then getting to talk the game, man. It's still really fun, it's still the game we love to play, and the game we love to talk about. And still can't believe we're getting paid to do it, but that's a story for a different day.
Demetri Ravanos
Thanks, y'all.
Moderator
Thanks Demetri. Next up we have Chris Bumbaca from USA Today.
Chris Bumbaca
Hey everyone, we'll start with Richard. I see there, underneath the sign for your podcast, and this summer Draymond Green making waves with his comments about new media. Do you see what you do as a way that new media can become more mainstream and bring that perspective, I guess?
Richard Sherman
Yeah. It's just a different perspective. Everybody has a place; different parts of the media see the game and the perspective that everybody has is valuable. And I think it's a unique perspective we have coming from players that have played or recently played or played in the past. And it's unique in terms of just understanding how things work on the field, the concepts people are using, the mindset players may be in, the locker room dynamics. Things that only players who have been in those situations and have experienced those things can really speak to in depth. And I'm excited, man. It's an exciting time and it's exciting to be a part of.
Chris Bumbaca
Thank you. And then for Tony, I know a lot less time with this crew compared to your time at Fox, but how do you compare it so far? Just in terms of trying to gel with the chemistry, maybe comparing your start at Fox to the early days here now.
Tony Gonzalez
Well, originally, I started out at CBS and you go from that crew, which we were good, and then you go see what they do over at Fox and you see the chemistry that is infectious throughout that whole building and working with Charissa. Because that's what it's all about, it's all about trust and the chemistry comes from really liking each other, people that you actually want to hang out with. And I think it couldn't have gotten off to a better start with these guys. Obviously, Charissa and I have that history, but Ryan and Richard and I have been famously getting along for beginning. And I've been around, like I said, with all these other guys, but it's about just not taking yourself so seriously, it's just football. A lot of the times the show is better when it's not so perfect, when things go off track and we can have some fun with it and be human about it.
And so, I couldn't think of a better way to start it off. I remember when they were throwing around names who could be a part of it, these are the guys that are sitting in these little boxes that I'm looking at right here. These are the guys that I wanted from the beginning to work with. Like Richard said, this is a dream come true, this is great. I think most people are going to be surprised when they watch us this year and they see how we get along and how much fun we're going to have. Because if we're having fun, that means the audience is having fun and I think that's football in a nutshell. Let's watch some football, watch some good hits, some touchdowns, but also let's have some fun because that's what it's all about.
Chris Bumbaca
Also, what's your best dad joke?
Tony Gonzalez
Well, one off the top of my head would be, by the way, I love your name. Bumbaca. That sounds tough. I don't know if you're a big guy, but you sound like a big guy with that last name.
Chris Bumbaca
I'm perfectly average.
Tony Gonzalez
Okay, you're average. What did-
Richard Sherman
Never say that again, you can't say that.
Tony Gonzalez
What do you call a fake noodle?
Chris Bumbaca
What?
Tony Gonzalez
An impasta.
Richard Sherman
Bam!
Tony Gonzalez
God, that was a good one.
Richard Sherman
That was a good one. He can't use all his best stuff right now because then he wouldn't have anything for TNF. Come on, don't push it now.
Charissa Thompson
This guy's got more material than the fabric store. He's fine.
Richard Sherman
Right? Okay, CT.
Charissa Thompson
I mean this guy, no shortage of jokes. He's never said the same joke twice to me. So, I'll give him that. He's got a depth and breadth as long as his career.
Tony Gonzalez
That was her interior designer little spin right there. Perfect.
Charissa Thompson
See? And that's the chemistry we're talking about right there. Synergy. Thank you, Tony. It's called House&Home and if you guys would like a consultation, I'm available after the season.
Tony Gonzalez
Shameless, shameless. What's next? Richard, where's yours? We see Richard Sherman Show. We got Charissa Thompson. What do you have to plug Ryan? What do you have for us?
Ryan Fitzpatrick
I'm actually looking for a babysitter. If anybody can come over and watch seven kids just for a couple hours a day.
Tony Gonzalez
Could you split them up? Maybe a three and three? I'll take three.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Yeah, but then we'd still have one more. So, three, three, and one. So, we can't forget about the other one.
Charissa Thompson
One just roams.
Richard Sherman
Well, the older ones you just got to let-
Ryan Fitzpatrick
He is 15, yeah. He should be fine, yeah.
Richard Sherman
Right, just let him go.
Chris Bumbaca
At risk of completely getting this off the rails, I do have a somewhat serious one for Charissa. Do you like that you called Ryan the QB of the desk? Do you the dynamic of having a defender, a quarterback, and then Tony being a Hall of Fame tight end receiver?
Charissa Thompson
Oh yeah. Look, it's not my job to assemble the cast. That's Marie's department and, to Tony's previous point if I got my say in it, this is definitely the group that I'd want to have. But I do think it's in my tenure being on an NFL desk, it's a quarterback-driven league and you got to have that on the desk and you always want some perspective on the defensive side of the ball. And for Tony's credentials, they speak for themselves. So yeah. I mean, it's nice to have all, if you can get all of that and yeah, I couldn't ask for a better group because, again going back to Ryan's humility with all the different teams he's played for, he is the first to say and the different perspective. If our text chain is any indication of what the show will be like, it won't be boring.
Chris Bumbaca
Thank you.
Richard Sherman
Bumbaca!
Moderator
Thanks Chris. Up next, we have Alan Pergament. And just a reminder, if you'd like to ask a question, just raise your hand and you'll come up next in the queue.
Alan Pergament
Okay, Ryan, I have a serious question and a not so serious question, although it's nothing like impasta. I'm from Buffalo so I have two questions for you. By the way, I'm not sure Buffalo's going to love that shirt. But anyway, one thing, the beard. Did Amazon tell you to keep it because it's your signature? This is the not serious one. Or did they say nothing to you? And the more serious question, since you played for, they say everybody, I know you've not played for everybody. It only seems that way.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Only nine teams.
Alan Pergament
Yeah. Is it going to be tougher to criticize? Everybody loves you, Ryan, is it going to be tough for the criticize you? To criticize others?
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Yeah, I'll start with the light question. The beard. I think they are okay with whatever, but personally with my daughters and my wife, they don't want to see me without facial hair. So that's more of home-life happiness, I'm going to go ahead and keep the beard. In terms of the criticism, or being critical, with that and with just the trust issues of having conversations with guys, what can I say on air, what can't I say on air? I just had a great conversation with Dan Patrick the other day when I was doing his show and we were talking about Amazon Thursday Night Football and he said, essentially just tell the truth, just be fair. And I thought that was good advice, I'm going to try to be fair. So, a great example would be from this weekend. I'm also going to try to have an informed opinion. So, if I didn't watch the game, I'm not just going to look at the stats and say, boy, Tua, he played great or he didn't play well. So, he is a very good friend of mine, but he's a lightning rod in the media and there's going to be plenty of questions about him. I've got no problem being critical to it if it's fair. And on the same end, I'm also going to be very complimentary when he does good things. So, I thought that was great advice from Dan Patrick. I think it's easier said than done and that'll be a struggle for me that I'll have to get better at as we go on. But, again, leaning on Charissa and Tony for some advice on some of that stuff as we go, will be helpful for me as well.
Alan Pergament
Well, I joined late, so what did you think of Tua's performance then?
Charissa Thompson
You'll have to watch on Thursday night.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
I'm bringing it up. Yeah, we'll watch on Thursday night or on the media blitz of six hours of radio I'm doing tomorrow. I don't want to have to say the same thing, I guess, right now.
Alan Pergament
Okay, fair enough. Thank you.
Moderator
Next up, we're going to go to Jeff Tracy.
Jeff Tracy
Hey, thanks so much for doing this, everyone. Got a just quick football-centric question for Ryan, Richard, and Tony. Obviously, this first game on Thursday, neither team is exactly going to take anyone by surprise, but I'm curious who your pick for this year's Bengals is.
Richard Sherman
This year's what?
Jeff Tracy
The team that's going to surprise everyone and maybe make a run at it, as the Bengals did last year.
Tony Gonzalez
Dark Horse. Dark Horse.
Richard Sherman
Minnesota Vikings.
Tony Gonzalez
Okay, I like that.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Oh, the team that just blew the brakes off the Green Bay Packers?
Richard Sherman
You know what I mean? I'm going to take it in hindsight.
Jeff Tracy
Yeah, it doesn't have to be too hot of a take. I like that. That's fine.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
I'll go in the same light. It's probably not a huge sleeper pick, but I love the Ravens this year.
Jeff Tracy
Okay.
Tony Gonzalez
I'm thinking. I'm thinking. Philly. Is that...
Ryan Fitzpatrick
No, that works. That works, yeah.
Tony Gonzalez
I think Philly. I like the quarterback. I think he's dynamic and they got a pretty good defense so I think they got a chance.
Jeff Tracy
Yeah, you could see Jalen maybe taking that leap to the next level this year.
Tony Gonzalez
I do. My son plays fantasy football. He's 12 and he was like, "Who should I pick? Who should I pick?" And he had a late round and I'm like, "Get Hurts." I think he's going to have a good year.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Well, and I know you didn't ask, Charissa, just because she's going to pick Seattle, which is her normal response, but Charissa, I would be interested to hear what you're going to say.
Charissa Thompson
I would not pick Seattle because even though that where my allegiance lies, I have no problem jumping off that bandwagon because I know they're not going to be the team that they have been with my good friend Richard Sherman over the last decade. So, I like the Colts in spite of what happened yesterday, that team. Why, was that your pick?
Richard Sherman
No, no, no.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
I like the Colts too.
Richard Sherman
Wanted them to do so much better yesterday.
Charissa Thompson
I know. It's week one, I am still very confident in the talent that they have on both sides of the ball and of course Jonathan Taylor picking up right where he left off last year. And I think that new system for Matt Ryan, I'm excited to see what they can do and I still have them winning that division.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
And they didn't really play in this preseason.
Richard Sherman
I don't know if it's because we watched the Texans play so many times and then just to see the Colts struggle with them as they did, it was just like, "Oh, no."
Charissa Thompson
Week one.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Week one. Week one.
Jeff Tracy
Great. Thank you all.
Richard Sherman
Matt Ryan's still at 352, Tony.
Tony Gonzalez
Oh, he always does. He plays well. He can sling it.
Richard Sherman
He can sling it.
Moderator
And just another reminder, if you want to ask a question, please just raise your hand. But up next, we're going to go to Andrew Bucholtz from Awful Announcing.
Andrew Bucholtz
Hi. Thanks very much. My question is for Charissa. You mentioned earlier that it's nice working with some rookies because they don't have preconceived ideas about these kinds of broadcasts. What are you looking to do differently with this broadcast that might be a little bit unusual?
Charissa Thompson
Oh, I don't think it's a matter of looking to do anything different. I think, as Tony had previously stated, I like when things go off the rails because as a viewer, I like watching uncomfortable situations that can be made comfortable by the people that are on the desk or who's ever hosting the show. And so, as a consumer of other broadcasts, I always like when things aren't perfect because then they seem more relatable. And again, my objective in any show that I've ever hosted is to entertain and inform. And if you can strike a balance between those two and however you go about achieving that, it's a win. So, chemistry is number one, I think you never want to underestimate the viewer's intelligence and you never want to over estimate that as well because they will read between the lines quickly if the crew likes each other or not. So not looking to do anything different per se, but just be the show that I enjoy watching.
Andrew Bucholtz
For sure. Thank you very much.
Charissa Thompson
Thank you.
Moderator
Thanks, Andrew. And now we have one final question from Mike Reynolds.
Mike Reynolds
Hello. Thanks for doing this. Good luck to everybody on the season. I'm going to go crash commercial on you, I apologize. I've received some Amazon packages with the Thursday Night Football logo, I've seen a lot of promos on the games this past week. How much can you speak to your promotional level and will it continue at this pace throughout the season? As you said, you're in game one of an 11-year relationship.
Marie Donoghue
Yeah, absolutely. Look, I think what you saw this past week is the entire Amazon company is behind this initiative, so I hope you got some boxes and you'll be seeing more ads and as you come to any of our services this week, you won't be able to miss the game. So, we're certainly doing third-party advertising, which you'll see on major networks and podcasts and radio and all that, but this company is behind it in a big way. So yeah, you will see consistent, strong marketing throughout the season.
Mike Reynolds
And if I may, can you speak to sell-through level for the season or from the ad perspective?
Marie Donoghue
Oh, actually, yeah, we can probably get that for you separately, Mike.
Mike Reynolds
Okay.
Marie Donoghue
I'm not sure what the latest are and I'm not sure what they've announced, but we'll get you an answer today.
Mike Reynolds
Thank you so much. Good luck, everyone, on the season.
Marie Donoghue
Of course. Thank you.
Tony Gonzalez
Thank you.
Moderator
Thank you, Mike. And thanks everyone for joining us today.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Thank you.
Charissa Thompson
Thank you.
Richard Sherman
Thank you.
Marie Donoghue
Thanks, everybody.
Ryan Fitzpatrick
See you.
- Thursday Night Football