By Richie Zyontz
FOX NFL Lead Producer
Editor’s Note: Richie Zyontz has been an NFL producer for FOX since 1994 and is in his twenty third season as a lead producer. He has greater than 40 years of championship expertise and has produced seven Super Bowls. Throughout the 2024 NFL season, he’ll present an inside look as FOX’s new No. 1 NFL staff, together with NFL legend Tom Brady, makes its journey to Super Bowl LIX. Read extra behind-the-scenes tales from Richie Zyontz right here.
Producing an NFL sport is like making a puzzle. All voices, pictures, replays and graphics should match completely and intelligently. It’s a whirlwind of selections made in an setting the place seconds can really feel like an eternity. The strain on the mind is intense. This is dwell tv.
But maybe essentially the most heated, pressure-filled determination we face days earlier than every sport is the one which warms our hearts essentially the most: the place to go for our weekly staff dinner.
Pressure from a shocking supply
The duty is big. Feeding and catering to a touring group of 20 folks, all with completely different tastes, is fraught with hazard. I as soon as obtained clipped after selecting Italian eating places a number of occasions. My punishment was to spend a number of Saturday nights watching others eat uncooked fish in sushi bars.
But this week the strain was off. Our go to to Philadelphia not solely featured a titanic conflict between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Eagles, however provided a unanimous selection for dinner – Aroma on third – an old-school (fortunately) Italian spot in South Philly.
The suggestion got here from Dom DiSandro (Big Dom), the Eagles’ head of safety and jack-of-all-trades. He took us there final season and we had been so impressed we talked about it on the air through the Eagles-49ers broadcast. Then, a couple of minutes later, Dom obtained right into a sideline brawl with San Francisco linebacker Dre Greenlaw and was ejected from the sport. Thus a legend was born.
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Dom is now an area people hero, along with his personal line of merchandise. In reality, his look on the restaurant midway via our dinner elicited an even bigger response than Tom Brady’s.
The meals arrived at a dizzying tempo. Film buffs could bear in mind the 1963 traditional “La Grande Bouffe” starring Marcello Mastroianni, the place a gaggle of mates resolve to eat one another to demise. Luckily all of us walked away in good well being, though affiliate producer Rich Gross appeared just a little shaky.
Tom Brady and Rich Gross loved a pleasant meal at Aroma on the third. (Photo courtesy of Richie Zyontz)
It hurts a lot
Speaking of shaky, the narrative all week within the supposed “City of Brotherly Love” has been criticism of quarterback Jalen Hurts and Philly’s disappointing passing sport. Our cameras captured a heat hug earlier than the kick between Hurts and broad receiver AJ Brown. That hug was the precursor to an enormous day for Hurts and his two main receivers, Brown and DeVonta Smith.
Hurts is an attention-grabbing determine. Often showing morose on tv screens, sitting stone-faced on the bench and exhibiting little emotion, he performed with fireplace on Sunday, repeatedly incomes reward from Brady. Tom needed to see Hurts get the ball out shortly to enhance his timing along with his receivers. He did simply that.
After the match, he gained the LFG Player of the Game award and confirmed the character many thought he lacked. Hurts joked with Brady, stating, “you beat me a pair occasions and now you are giving me trophies, that is the way you do it now, huh?”
Validation by the GOAT will go a great distance in placing an finish to no matter controversy surrounded Hurts and the Eagles.
Tom Brady’s LFG Player of the Game: Eagles’ Jalen Hurts | Week 15 DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE
Tom Brady, Kevin Burkhardt and the superb staff chemistry
Tom Brady has gotten higher each week. Of course I’m biased, however his timing, tempo, proactive observations and skill to react to photographs, graphics and replays have change into glorious. Players want representatives to enhance, and so do broadcasters. And having a accomplice as altruistic, affected person and accommodating as Kevin Burkhardt helps so much. Their chemistry is actual, the identical on the dinner desk on Saturday evening as it’s on the air on Sunday. Chemistry can’t be produced. Either you will have it or you do not. They have it in spades.
Our reporters Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi had been stored busy on the sidelines, seemingly freezing, as a parade of key gamers entered the blue tent with accidents. Hurts, Saquon Barkley, Lane Johnson, Landon Dickerson and TJ Watt all required medical consideration. And whereas we added new heaters to make our stand cozier, our reporters had been left to the weather and stored us knowledgeable all through the eventful match.
And one remaining be aware on Big Dom… As is their behavior, our cameras adopted the exercise on the Eagles bench after a foul particular groups penalty, and caught coach Nick Sirianni apparently arguing with the participant perpetrator, Jalen Carter, and his place coach Clint Hurtt.
Lo and behold, Big Dom stepped in because the peacemaker and shortly the argument was over.
Our staff dinner in Philadelphia final week. Next week? Baltimore! (Photo courtesy of Richie Zyontz)
So on the 56th anniversary of disgruntled Eagles followers throwing snowballs at Santa Claus, the Philly trustworthy walked away glad after watching their beloved Eagles win their tenth consecutive sport.
And a follow-up to final week’s sore throat: Brady found John Madden’s treatment of heat water, lemon and honey. It labored and can now be a part of the TB 12 routine.
Now, our touring circus has a number of days to arrange for Saturday’s Steelers-Ravens showdown in Baltimore. It’s an important sport with playoff implications, and it is the primary time our staff has performed a weekend sport with two AFC groups.
Crab desserts, right here we come!
Richie Zyontz has been an NFL producer for FOX since 1994 and is in his twenty third season as a lead producer. He has greater than 40 years of NFL expertise.
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