Sunday NFL Countdown: The Many Peytons in Indiana; Amari Cooper’s Fancy Footwork; and More
Host Chris Berman and analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson will preview NFL week 9 games on ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown on November 8 at 11 a.m. ET. Reporter/host Wendi Nix will host select segments, NFL insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter will report the day’s headlines and news, with senior analyst Matthew Berry and special contributor Stephen A. Smith.
The live, two-hour pre-game program will be preceded by a one-hour NFL Insiders: Sunday Edition at 10 a.m. featuring host Trey Wingo, NFL Insiders Mortensen and Schefter and NFL Front Office Insider Louis Riddick.
Reporter game assignments for week 9:
- Rams at Vikings (Josina Anderson)
- Raiders at Steelers (Britt McHenry)
- Redskins at Patriots (Michele Steele)
- Packers at Panthers (Sal Paolantonio)
- Broncos at Colts (Bob Holtzman)
- Eagles at Cowboys (Ed Werder)
Features:
- A Plethora of Peytons: As Peyton Manning returns to Indianapolis to face the franchise he called home for 13 years, the former Colt might be gone but he is not forgotten. As Countdown’s Greg Garber reports, evidence of the love for Manning in Indiana abounds in the dozens of high school athletes in the state named Peyton – after their parents’ favorite NFL quarterback.
- Fancy Footwork – Amari Cooper: The Raiders’ Amari Cooper is having one of the best starts ever for a NFL rookie wide receiver. Countdown’s Jim Trotter explores how Cooper’s fantastic footwork is crossing-up opposing cornerbacks, helping the Raiders to their best start since 2011.
- Todd Gurley vs. Adrian Peterson: Using archival footage and interviews, Countdown recaps the story of how the running backs came back from ACL injury to become two of the top rushers in the NFL.
- Rise and Fall of the Young Quarterbacks: Colin Kaepernick, Robert Griffin III, and perhaps Andrew Luck, are three quarterbacks who were celebrated early in their respective careers but are now relatively underperforming. Stephen A., Cris Carter and Tom Jackson discuss their struggles.
ESPN’s Monday Night Football: Chicago Bears vs. San Diego Chargers
Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers host Jay Cutler and the Chicago Bears on ESPN’s Monday Night Football on November 9 at 8:10 p.m. The MNF team of Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden and Lisa Salters will call the game from Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
Leading into the matchup, Chris Berman, Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson and Insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter (in Bristol) and Suzy Kolber, Trent Dilfer, Ray Lewis and Steve Young (in San Diego) will review Sunday’s games and preview the MNF matchup in a two-hour Monday Night Countdown at 6 p.m. on ESPN.
MNF is available on ESPN Deportes and will be streamed live on WatchESPN for fans with video subscriptions from affiliated providers. Highlights:
- Gruden’s Grill Session with Philip Rivers: Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers visits with MNF’s Super Bowl-winning coach, Jon Gruden, in this week’s edition of “Gruden’s Grill Session.”
- Peyton Manning – A Veterans Day Salute: Countdown will feature excerpts from a short film on how Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is honoring the four U.S. Marines and one U.S. Navy sailor killed in the July 2015 shootings at the U.S. Naval and Marine Reserve Center in Chattanooga, Tenn., the state where Manning went to college. The documentary short is produced by MAGGIEVISION Productions.
- Rick Reilly Feature – Blues Musician Joe Barksdale: San Diego’s right tackle Joe Barksdale is a music enthusiast who plays at open mic nights and owns four Fender guitars in his collection. Countdown’s Rick Reilly joined Barksdale on a tour of the Fender guitar factory in Corona, Calif., where he discussed his passion for music.
NFL Doubleheader on ESPN Radio: Rams at Vikings and Broncos at Colts
ESPN Radio’s national coverage of Sunday afternoon NFL regular-season games continues Sunday, Nov. 8, with a doubleheader. At noon, Todd Gurley and the St. Louis Rams visit Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota Vikings in a matchup of the league’s top running backs. Marc Kestecher and an analyst (to be determined) will call the action, with reporter Holly Rowe. At 4 p.m., Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos visit Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts. Bill Rosinski and analyst Bill Polian will call the game with reporter Ian Fitzsimmons.
NFL Matchup: Jaws’ Shot Play – Green Bay at Carolina; Hoge’s Coaches Clicker – St. Louis at Minnesota; and More
NFL Matchup host Sal Paolantonio and analysts Ron Jaworski and Merril Hoge preview the weekend’s NFL matchups via film-room X’s and O’s analysis Saturday, Nov. 7, at 8:30 a.m. on ESPN2 (re-air on ESPN, Sunday at 3:30 and 6:30 a.m.). Highlights:
Key Segments:
- Jaws’ Shot Play – Green Bay at Carolina: Some teams take one or two shot-plays per game. Others don’t. Jaworski explains a Carolina Panthers play where the offense requires eight players blocking for max protection with only two receivers, and quarterback Cam Newton fakes a run before taking a shot on a completed deep pass to receiver Corey Brown.
- Hoge’s Coaches Clicker – St. Louis at Minnesota: Rams running back Todd Gurley has been compared to the Vikings’ Adrian Peterson for many reasons, including their remarkable returns from knee surgery and their ranking among the NFL’s top five rushers. Hoge shows what makes both backs so successful.
- Inside the Matchup – Philadelphia at Dallas: The Cowboys run defense did a great job cancelling all the gaps against the inside zone run versus the Eagles during their week 2 game in Philadelphia. Jaworski shows how and why the Cowboys defensive unit was successful against the fast Eagles offense.
Jaws QB Big Board – 2015 Second Quarter Rankings
Ron Jaworski, ESPN’s X’s and O’s technician and an expert on the art of quarterbacking, will release the second quarter rankings for his self-titled “Jaws QB Big Board” next week. His first quarter rankings of the 32 NFL starting quarterbacks places Aaron Rodgers (#1), Tom Brady (#2), Peyton Manning (#3), Ben Roethlisberger (#4) and Russell Wilson (#5) at the top and Ryan Mallett (#32), Jameis Winston (#31), Marcos Mariotta (#30), Colin Kaepernick (#29) and Blake Bortles (#28) at the bottom.
NFL Live: 2015 Midseason Awards (ESPN, Nov. 11 at 3:30 p.m.)
On Wednesday, Nov. 11, NFL Live will present its annual NFL Midseason Awards with host Trey Wingo and analysts Jerome Bettis, Ryan Clark and Damien Woody live on ESPN at 3:30 p.m. The hour-long program will reveal the results of fan polling on www.ESPN.com and ESPN social media platforms – Twitter, Facebook, et al – for different categories such as: Coach of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year, Comeback Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year (Non-QB), and more.
The Weekend Blitz with Mike Tirico and Chris Mortensen
Every Friday of the football season, ESPN’s Mike Tirico and Chris Mortensen preview the slate of NFL games on The Weekend Blitz. The program airs Fridays at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN Radio, and fans can download the podcast on iTunes and via the ESPN PodCenter.
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