Feature on Jason Garrett’s Summer Football Camp and Conversation with Mike Tomlin Highlight Week 5 NFL Content on ESPN

Sunday NFL Countdown: Jason Garrett’s Princeton Camp; Julio Jones Separation; and More 

Host Chris Berman and analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson will preview the NFL’s week 5 action on ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown presented by Snickers on October 11 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 two-hour 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 5:

• Seahawks at Bengals (Bob Holtzman)
• Redskins at Falcons (Josina Anderson)
• Saints at Eagles (Sal Paolantonio)
• Rams at Packers (Lindsay Czarniak)
• Patriots at Cowboys (Ed Werder)

Features:

• Jason Garrett – The Starfish: Each summer, the Cowboy head coach runs a camp at Princeton University where inner city high school student-athletes travel to the Ivy League campus to learn from Jason Garrett and select Cowboy players. The theme of the camp is “changing the world by trying to save one starfish at a time.” In her first non-injury feature for Sunday NFL Countdown, Stephania Bell, ESPN’s sports injury analyst, reports on the unique reunion when Garrett learns that Patriots defensive tackle Dominique Easley attended his camp, and how the Cowboys coach carries that memory with him to this day.
• Julio Jones Separation: Hall of Fame receiver and Countdown’s Cris Carter travels to Atlanta for an on-field demo with Falcons record-setting wide receiver Julio Jones, who shows the techniques how he is working his way open for the ball.
• Andy Dalton Soundtracks: The Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton – who has led his team to a 4-0 start – wired for in-game audio during the team’s week 4 home win over the Kansas City Chief is the subject of this week’s “Soundtracks.”
• Make The Call: After a missed call at the end of the Lions at Seahawks Monday Night Football game, a former NFL official (TBD) will join Countdown to quiz Ditka and Jackson on how well they know some of the obscure NFL rules.

Jon Gruden’s 100^th Monday Night Football: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. San Diego Chargers

Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers host Antonio Brown and the Pittsburgh Steelers on ESPN’s Monday Night Football on October 12 at 8:15 p.m. The MNF commentator team of Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden and Lisa Salters call the game from Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

Steelers-Chargers will mark Jon Gruden’s 100^th Monday Night Football telecast, making the Super Bowl-winning coach the seventh MNF commentator to work 100 games in the booth behind Frank Gifford, Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith and Tirico.

Leading into the matchup, Chris Berman and Suzy Kolber host Monday Night Countdown at 6 p.m. on ESPN. NFL analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson and Keyshawn Johnson and Insiders Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter review Sunday’s games and preview the MNF matchup with Berman in studio, while Trent Dilfer, Ray Lewis, Steve Young and Kolber offer analysis from Qualcomm Stadium.

MNF is available on ESPN Deportes and will be streamed live on WatchESPN for fans with video subscriptions from affiliated providers. Countdown highlights:

• Gruden’s Grill Session with Philip Rivers: The Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers visits with Super Bowl-winning coach and MNF’s Jon Gruden, in this week’s edition of “Gruden’s Grill Session.”
• Mike Tomlin Conversation with Stephen A. Smith: After his team’s close loss at home to division rival Baltimore following a questionable play call late in the game, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin sits for a one-on-one conversation with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.
• Rick Reilly Feature – Chargers’ Sneaky Fan: Of all the Chargers fans who will be unhappy if the team leaves San Diego, perhaps none will be more so than Dion Rich, who made a career out of sneaking into big sporting events but has always paid to see his favorite football team.  Rich has snuck into many Super Bowls, the Olympics and Presidential conventions but now at 85 is fighting City Hall trying to get San Diego to keep the only team he would pay to see.

NFL Sundays on ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio’s national coverage of Sunday afternoon NFL regular-season games continues Sunday, Oct. 11, with Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals hosting Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks at 1 p.m. Commentator Drew Goodman, analyst Bill Polian and reporter Ian Fitzsimmons will call the action.  ESPN Radio broadcasts a one-hour pre-game show at noon before each week’s game.

NFL Matchup: Seattle at Cincinnati in Matchup Extra; Jaworski’s Passing Thought on Pittsburgh at San Diego; and More

NFL Matchup host Sal Paolantonio and analysts Ron Jaworski and Louis Riddick, (filling in for a recuperating Merril Hoge), preview the weekend’s NFL matchups via film-room X’s and O’s analysis Saturday, Oct. 10, at 8:30 a.m. on ESPN2 (re-air on ESPN, Sunday at 4 and 6:30 a.m.). Highlights:

Key Segments:

• Matchup Extra – Seattle at Cincinnati: Seahawks ran two verticals in their staple 3X1 set. Jaws explains how Graham held the safety with his route which allowed Wilson to throw over him as Baldwin beat the corner on his way to a touchdown
• Matchup Vision – Bengals Offense: The 4-0 Cincinnati Bengals are ranked No. 2 in the league in overall offense and fourth in passing offense. Riddick explains how Seattle’s defense will have a tough time stopping quarterback Andy Dalton and his skill players, especially his favorite target wide receiver A.J. Green.
• Jaws’ Playbook on New England at Dallas: Quarterback Tom Brady and the Patriots offense have put up staggering numbers. Jaworski shows how the Patriots’ unique schemes on offense – man and zone routes – are dictated by the coverage from opposing defenses.
• Passing Thought – Pittsburgh at San Diego: Despite San Diego’s 2-2 record they possess one of the league’s most dynamic passing attacks, contends Jaworski, as he shows how quarterback Philip Rivers beats the defensive coverage by opposing defenses with his understanding of unique passing concepts.

E:60 Profiles Eagles Linebacker Connor Barwin

On Wednesday, Oct. 14, at 8 p.m., ESPN’s award-winning newsmagazine, E:60, will include an in-depth profile of Eagles All-Pro linebacker Connor Barwin.

• On paper, the Philadelphia Eagles outside linebacker Connor Barwin is the prototypical NFL star on the rise.  In 2014 he led the NFC in sacks with 14.5 and earned a second team All-Pro selection. His six-year, $40 million contract makes him one of the highest-paid players on the team.  The son of a city planner growing up in Hazel Park, Mich., Barwin spent his days playing basketball in one of Detroit’s roughest areas – an experience he says still influences his values today. His older brother Joe is gay, and Barwin has openly supported him. Also, Barwin’s success has come despite being deaf in his left ear since birth. As E:60’s Jeremy Schaap reports, these and other experiences have molded Barwin into one of the most unique and interesting players in the NFL. Trailer.

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