ESPN NFL Programming Update – Week 6

Sunday NFL Countdown: Robert Kraft’s Owner’s Box; Jordy Nelson Walking the Line; Caliendo on Gruden; and more

Sunday NFL Countdown will preview the NFL games Sunday, Oct. 13, at 10 a.m. on ESPN with host Chris Berman and analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson, Keyshawn Johnson and Ray Lewis. The three-hour pregame program will also feature ESPN’s senior fantasy sports analyst Matthew Berry, who will provide fantasy football updates and insight, while NFL insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter will report the day’s headlines and news across the league.

Sunday NFL Countdown will also feature updates from reporters at games, including:

• Sal Paolantonio and Ron Jaworski (Green Bay Packers at Baltimore Ravens – Sunday’s marquee 1 p.m. game)
• Josina Anderson (Pittsburgh Steelers at New York Jets)
• Colleen Dominguez (Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs)
• Ed Werder (New Orleans Saints at New England Patriots)

What to watch for:

• Robert Kraft’s Owner’s Box: The owner’s box at Gillette Stadium is fast becoming “the place” to be for celebrities on any given NFL Sunday afternoon. ESPN’s Chris Connelly reports on some of the celebrities who have spent time watching the Patriots play in the team’s owner’s box, including Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler, Donald Trump, Ozzy Osbourne and more.
• Walk the Line with Jordy Nelson: This season wide receiver Jordy Nelson has made several sideline catches where he works the sideline by keeping two feet inbounds. Countdown’s Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter visits with Nelson in Green Bay to demonstrate the art of catching the football on the edge of the sidelines.
• Frank Caliendo – Gruden “30 for 30” Profile: Frank Caliendo, the comedian and impressionist, takes a unique behind-the-scenes look at Super Bowl winning coach and MNF analyst Jon Gruden’s demeanor away from talking football.
• Soundtracks: The play of safety Eric Berry has been one of the main reasons the Kansas City Chiefs are undefeated this season. Berry, who is wired for sound from the team’s week 4 win over the Giants.

Monday Night Football: Colts’ Andrew Luck Makes MNF Debut vs. Philip Rivers and Chargers

Andrew Luck will make his Monday Night Football debut when he leads the AFC South-leading Indianapolis Colts into San Diego to face Philip Rivers and the Chargers on October 14 at 8:25 p.m. ET on ESPN. Mike Tirico will have the call, Jon Gruden will serve as analyst and Lisa Salters will report from the sideline at Qualcomm Stadium. The game will also be available on ESPN’s Spanish-language ESPN Deportes and WatchESPN.

On Monday night, Rivers could become the first player in NFL history to throw for 400 yards in three consecutive games, according to Elias. Additionally, Colts’ wide receiver Reggie Wayne is just four receptions shy of 1,000. If he accomplishes that, he would be the second player to reach this milestone on MNF (Tim Brown was the first on December 2, 2002).

Prior to the game, Suzy Kolber will host a two-hour Monday Night Countdown (6:30 p.m., ESPN) from Qualcomm Stadium with analysts Trent Dilfer, Lewis and Steve Young, contributor Rick Reilly and Tirico, Gruden and Salters. Studio host Berman will join the show from ESPN’s headquarters with analysts Carter, Ditka, Jackson and Johnson and insiders Mortensen and Schefter. Highlights:

• Gruden’s Extra: Five weeks into his sophomore season, quarterback Andrew Luck has emerged as one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. The Gruden’s QB Camp alum joins Gruden again to discuss the Colts’ 4-1 start.
• Philip Rivers Conversation: After two underperforming seasons, Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers has returned to form, throwing for 400 yards in three of his five games in 2013. He sits for a conversation with Lisa Salters.
• Rick Reilly Feature: Adam Vinatieri, the Colts Super Bowl wining kicker and the oldest player in the NFL, is the subject of Monday Night Countdown’s Rick Reilly feature.

Snickers NFL Matchup – Cowboys go Empty; Saints Designer Blitz; Aaron Rodgers and the Back Shoulder Throw; and More

NFL Matchup host Sal Paolantonio and analysts Ron Jaworski and Merril Hoge will preview the weekend’s key matchups by taking viewers inside the film room with X’s and O’s analysis on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 8:30 a.m. on ESPN2 (re-air on ESPN, Sunday at 6:30 a.m.).  Highlights:

• Jaws Playbook – Nick Foles and Eagles Bunch Formation: Jaworski goes to the playbook to demonstrate the difference in the Eagles offense between quarterbacks Nick Foles and Michael Vick, using a play where receiver DeSean Jackson had a 28-yard reception versus the Giants by lining-up in a bunch formation as the inside receiver.
• Between the Lines – Chiefs Spy Concept: Jaworski shows how the Chiefs’ defense uses a spy concept to defend mobile quarterbacks and explains how Kansas City will deploy the concept successfully against Raiders mobile quarterback Terrelle Pryor.
• Blitz Breakdown – Saints Designer Blitz versus Bears: Expect Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, who is known for creating design blitz schemes, to call confounding schemes against quarterback Tom Brady. Jaworski breaks down two designer blitzes the Saints used last Sunday versus Chicago and how both led to sacks.
• In The Red Zone – Patriots’ Red Zone Defense: The 5-0 Saints will ride their explosive offense into New England to face a Patriots defense that is very efficient in the red zone.  Hoge reveals how the Patriots defense challenges teams by taking away their dangerous targets in the red zone.
• Hoge Breakdown – Cards’ “Fire X” Exchange and Blitz Spy: Hoge explains two staple plays for the Arizona Cardinals defense – the unconventional “Fire X” blitz and the blitz-spy in man coverage.
• Game within The Game – Cowboys Empty Offense against Nickel Defense: Hoge describes how the Dallas Cowboys offense was successful in the pass game last week against Denver, which primarily plays nickel defense, and projects it to their Sunday matchup against the Redskins’ nickel defense.
• Shot Play – Andrew Luck to T.Y. Hilton 29 yard TD versus Seahawks: Hoge shows how quarterback Andrew Luck read Seattle’s defense pre-snap, identified the Cover 3 coverage and threw the ball over cornerback Brandon Browner for a 29-yard touchdown catch by wide receiver T.Y. Hilton.
• The Film Room – Aaron Rodgers’ Back Shoulder Throw to Jordy Nelson: Using Aaron Rodgers’ pass to receiver Jordy Nelson, Jaworski explains how Rodgers has perfected the precise art of throwing the ball to a receiver’s back shoulder.

NaVorro Bowman Featured on ESPN “E:60” Tuesday

San Francisco 49ers linebacker NaVorro Bowman will be featured in the Tuesday, Oct. 15, episode of ESPN’s newsmagazine program E:60. Bowman had almost everything he dreamed of when the 2012 season ended. He’d been named to his first Pro Bowl. He lead his team to an NFC Championship and the Super Bowl. And he had signed a five-year, $42.5 million contract extension. In fact, the only thing the 25-year-old did not have was peace of mind. Bowman had recently learned about a family secret, a secret that had long been kept from him and that threw everything he thought he knew about himself into question. His identity shaken, his faith tested, and his family fractured, Bowman decided to find out the truth about himself. E:60‘s Jeffri Chadiha joins Bowman on a very personal journey of discovery in Washington, D.C., a journey on which Bowman uncovers far more than he ever expected. E:60 airs at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

ESPN.com – “Hot Read” on Cleveland Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam

ESPN.com senior writer Elizabeth Merrill profiles Jimmy Haslam, telling the story how the Cleveland Browns owner is dealing with the complex FBI investigation that is threatening the fortune he and his father built over the years, one Pilot truck stop at a time.

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