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Block UserWell, our first week of Fox NFL Sunday is in the books, time to get ready for Week-2. As we go along in this, my "rookie" season as host of the big shindig, I'll let you in on some of the off-screen, behind -the-scenes stuff that goes on from time to time.
Like our Week 1 show.
To say that Terry, Howie, and Jimmy were ecstatic to be back in the Fox studio for the upcoming season, compared to last year's road circus, would be an understatement. For me, after 10-years of being on the road doing games as a play-by-play guy for Fox, coupled with last year's road duties, it's a totally different experience.
What I think it does for the show is make things better because the guys can simply be themselves. They can hear each other, they can come back with the quick quips that only good friends can say to you, and they don't have to worry about being hit in the head by objects thrown from the crowd (like the basketball that beaned Howie in the Giants Stadium parking lot last fall).
A prime example was after Frank Caliendo's piece and his mock-Madden's, mock-fight with the real Bob Costas. Howie's line that "Frank just got his butt kicked by a preschooler" was priceless and fit the piece perfectly. However, I don't think that response would have come about had we been on the road with the guys struggling just to hear over the crowd, forget having time to come up with a funny line.
By the way, we get to watch every play of every game that goes on Sunday. That's what we do between the end of the pregame show and the various halftime segments that we have for each game. Anyway, the funniest line to come out while watching the games occurred during the Denver/Buffalo contest when one of the guys (who shall remain nameless) uttered the line: "Travis Henry is running today like he's got 9-mouths to feed.".
Great line, I thought.
Dump Offs
...I don't watch reality television (sorry bosses, never even seen American Idol). But I do know who, this week, is the NFL's Biggest Loser: Bill Belichick. He may win more Super Bowls because he's that good a coach, and his teams are usually that talented, but his mojo is gone. Win or not, his methods will always be brought into question, and that's too bad......I am not accusing anyone else of cheating here, let's be clear on that. However, you can't convince me that had the coach who did this been named Mike Nolan, or Mike Holmgren, or Mike Tomlin, that the vitriol from the media and other NFL people would have been the same. There's a disdain for Belichick and the Patriots that no other team comes close to meeting. As one NFL head coach told me, he wanted to see them "get it" because they are so arrogant...
...Final word on Patriot-gate: I have no problem with the punishment, because I honestly don't think it's that big a deal compared to what coaches do every day to try to gain some type of advantage. That said, how does Cowboys QB coach Wade Wilson get a 5-game suspension for breaking the rules for health reasons and Belichick get just a financial fine and the loss of 1-of-2 1st round picks next year for breaking the rules for competitive reasons? You tell me which affects the integrity of the game more...
...Hey, I can't stand her music, but is it wrong to feel sorry for Britney Spears and the mess that she has become?...
...We should all feel a bit for 49ers runningback Frank Gore this Sunday. He plans to play despite the death of his mother, Liz, after her long battle with kidney disease. Anyone who has ever lost a loved one knows how hard it can be just to function in the immediate aftermath. He has to try to do it in the public eye...
...I think that the Chargers are the most talented team in the NFL. Thus far, I know that they are the most talkative...
...The Saints offense looked awful against the Colts, there's no way that happens again this week against Tampa...
...Ditto, the Bears against the Chiefs...
...Do you think when folks in Jacksonville rushed out to get tickets to the Falcons/Jags game when they went on sale this spring they were thinking, "can't wait to see who wins that Joey Harrington-David Garrard showdown!!"
...Chad Johnson's act used to be cute...used to be...
AFTER FURTHER REVIEW
Usually, documentary films aren't high on the list of recommendations. But you will have missed out on one of the best and more fun documentaries to come about if you don't see "In The Shadow of the Moon" while it's in theaters.
It's produced by Ron Howard and is absolutely fantastic. In fact, as soon as the movie ended, my wife leaned over to me and said, "that was really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really good". Yes, it was an 8-count-"really".
It's interviews with the only living people who have actually been to the moon (with the exception of Neil Armstrong who will not do interviews), interspersed with a lot of NASA footage from the actual moon missions.
It's surprisingly funny, and the stories told by the astronauts range from hilarious, to cute, to compelling. Michael Collins, who was back in the command module while Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were becoming the first to land on the moon, lets those of us who have always felt for him know that there was no reason to. He is definitely the star of the film, while Alan Bean adds the perfect comic relief.
Make sure you catch this movie, and catch it in the theater. The big screen makes a huge difference.