Sunday NFL Countdown: College GameDay’s Desmond Howard and Chiefs Tyreek Hill, Kirk Cousin’s Youth Football Coach, and More
Sam Ponder will host Sunday NFL Countdown with analysts Matt Hasselbeck, Randy Moss, Rex Ryan and Charles Woodson as they preview week 6 on Sunday, Oct. 15, at 10 a.m. ET. The three-hour show will also feature NFL Insiders Chris Mortensen, Louis Riddick and Adam Schefter, and senior fantasy sports analyst Matthew Berry.
College GameDay’s Desmond Howard, the only special team player to be named Super Bowl MVP – after his 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in Super Bowl XXXI, files his first Countdown feature. Howard visits with the Kansas City Chiefs explosive receiver and kick returner Tyreek Hill for a demo on the art of returning kickoffs and punts in the NFL.
Reporter game assignments for week 6:
- Packers at Vikings (Josina Anderson)
- Patriots at Jets (Sal Paolantonio)
- Lions at Saints (Dan Graziano)
- Steelers at Chiefs (Dianna Russini)
- Giants at Broncos (Jim Trotter)
Features:
- Jac Collinsworth Cold Calls with Calais Campbell: Countdown’s Jac Collinsworth talks Jaguars defensive end Calais Campbell into prank-calling his teammates. Collinsworth and Campbell get the best of rookie running back Leonard Fournette by getting him to participate in a faux rookie ritual.
- Kirk Cousins Youth Football Coach: Countdown reveals the source of Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins toughness – Hall of Fame linebacker Mike Singletary, who was Cousins’ pee wee football coach.
- Purple Dane: The story of Ravens superfan Cyndi “Purple Dane” Pierce, chairman of the board for Pro Football Ultimate Fan Association (founded in 1999). Her wedding to Dave Ricci was held at the association’s annual reunion during the Hall of Fame weekend. On her special day, Purple Dane turned to ultimate fans with personas fitting for a wedding – a bell ringer from Buffalo was the ring bearer; Steve Tate, a Green Bay Packer owner dressed up as an NFL official and blew the whistle to start the wedding; the Pope, a Saints ultimate fan and ordained minister, performed the wedding. Louis Riddick narrates.
Monday Night Football: Indiana Colts at Tennessee Titans
Monday Night Football on October 16 will feature the AFC South Divisional rivalry – Indianapolis Colts at Tennessee Titans – game on ESPN at 8:15 p.m. Sean McDonough and Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden with reporter Lisa Salters will call the game from Nissan Stadium in downtown Nashville. The Spanish-language telecast of the game with commentators Alvaro Martin, Raul Allegre and reporter John Sutcliffe will also be available in Spanish on ESPN Deportes (simulcast on ESPN2) and streamed live the ESPN App.
Preceding the game, Suzy Kolber will host Monday Night Countdown (6-8:15 p.m., ESPN) from Nissan Stadium with analysts Matt Hasselbeck – the former Titans and Colts quarterback, Randy Moss, Charles Woodson and Steve Young. Countdown highlights:
- Gruden’s Chalk Talk with Dick LeBeau: MNF analyst and Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden sits with Titans assistant head coach Dick LeBeau. The 80-year old is considered one of the best defensive coaches in NFL history.
- Titans Cornerback Logan Ryan: Before he signed a free agent deal with Tennessee in the offseason, Logan Ryan played four seasons in New England, where a rescue dog changed his life. For the last two years, Ryan featured a “Dog of the Month” on his social media platforms, giving canines overlooked due to physical ailments or health problems a chance to get adopted. Michelle Beisner-Buck
- Boomer’ Vault: This week Chris Berman looks back at the memorable 38-35 overtime win by the Indianapolis Colts over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on October 6, 2003, where quarterback Peyton Manning led an improbable comeback against the Buccaneers defense, trailing by 21 points with five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
- C’Mon Man: Monday Night Countdown’s look at the moments and blunders from the previous week in football that had our analysts saying, “C’Mon Man!”
ESPN Radio: Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers will lead the Green Bay Packers into Minneapolis to face the NFC North rival Vikings on ESPN Radio, Sunday, Oct. 15, at 12 noon. Adam Amin and analyst Bill Polian will call the game.
ESPN Digital:
- ESPN NFL writer Bill Barnwell discusses Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz and why he is here to stay
- NFL Nation reporter John Keim previews this weekend’s 49ers-Redskins game by writing how Kyle Shanahan’s belief fueled Kirk Cousin’s rise
- ESPN Insider Mike Sando speaks with NFL Executives who predict where Cousins will land in 2018
- NFL Nation’s Mike Reiss points out that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is taking an alarming number of hits this season
- The Undefeated’s senior NFL writer Jason Reid writes that Dallas Cowboys players have little to say about Jerry Jones’ stance on protests entering the team’s bye week
- The Undefeated senior writer and columnist Mike Wise pens a powerful first-person account (as told by) Washington Redskin DeAngelo Hall on the tough decisions facing players over the anthem protests.
- The Undefeated columnist and editor-at-large Bill Rhoden writes: NFL players discover their power. Now how should they wield it.
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