How Rodgers’ injury could impact network TV coverage. And NFL, Messi media notes
A six-pack of media notes on a Thursday:
▪ Networks who thought they would be getting future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers this season instead will be saddled with Zach Wilson.
But league broadcast rules this year will allow some flexibility to bump the Jets off marque slots, later this season, if New York flops without Rodgers.
NBC has no recourse to drop the Week 4 Sunday night Chiefs-Jets game; it isn’t eligible for flex scheduling. And even if NBC could replace the game, it probably would not because it’s early in the season and Patrick Mahomes always draws eyeballs.
ESPN cannot get out of the Nov. 6 Chargers at Jets game because it doesn’t fall within the network’s new flexible scheduling window.
But the NFL and NBC can drop the Jets at Raiders game from Sunday night in Week 10, under a league rule that allows NBC to replace two Sunday night games between Weeks 5 and 10. (Any NBC games can flexed out from Weeks 11 to 17.)
Jaguars-49ers could be a potential replacement for Raiders-Jets, though that decision is at least six weeks away. The Dolphins are off that day (Nov. 12).
Also, Amazon and NFL could flex out the Jets’ Week 17 Thursday game at Cleveland, on Dec. 28. That decision must be made at least 28 days in advance,
CBS and Fox had planned on sending the Jets to large audiences in the 4:25 window on four occasions this season. That could now change.
CBS still will send Jets at Cowboys to most of the nation on Sunday, because Dallas is TV’s most popular NFL draw, and CBS’ other 4:25 p.m. game, Washington-Denver, isn’t particularly appealing.
On Oct. 8, Jets-Denver could end up being a regional telecast that day, with Chiefs-Vikings going to most of the country on CBS at 4:25 p.m..
On Oct. 15, Fox likely will stick with Jets-Eagles as its primary 4:25 p.m. game.
On Nov. 19, Jets at Bills is scheduled to go to most of the country at 4:25 p.m. CBS, but that, too, could change.
▪ ESPN was cautious in reporting the nature of Rodgers’ injury during “Monday Night Football;” Adam Schefter noted at halftime that it could possibly be an Achilles, but nobody from the network went further than that during the game.
And nobody from ESPN cited a first-quarter tweet from media personality and Chargers team doctor David Chao that video of the injury revealed it likely was an Achilles tear.
Instead, Scott Van Pelt said doctors who speculated about the injury were “guessing.” That elicited a rebuke from Chao, who said he was not guessing but instead giving educated video analysis of the injury.
How to deal with speculation from prominent doctors on social media remains a conundrum for networks. It’s one thing not to cite those reports, but it was unnecessary for Van Pelt to summarily dismiss them, either, particularly because Chao’s evaluation ultimately was spot on.
▪ Fox NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira might miss the season with an injured back. Dean Blandino, a Fox veteran, is handling that role this season.
Pereira tweeted, “Bad back and soon to come surgery keeps me from traveling and keeps me home. You are blessed not to see me on the tube for the possibly the season.”
▪ For those without Apple TV, Inter Miami’s Sept. 24 game at Orlando City (7:30 p.m. on a Sunday night) will be the only opportunity to watch Lionel Messi on English television in a regular-season game this season, presuming he plays.
FS-1 is scheduled to carry that game. The Fox-owned FS-1 explored adding other Messi games but nothing materialized.
▪ Chris Fowler replaced Steve Levy on ESPN’s No. 2 NFL team.
Fowler, Louis Riddick and Dan Orlovsky will call five games when Joe Buck and Troy Aikman are doing other games. The Fowler/Levy games are
1). New Orleans-Carolina at 7:15 p.m. on Monday (while Buck and Aikman work Cleveland-Pittsburgh on ABC at 8:15 p.m. )
2). The Week 3 Rams-Cincinnati game on ESPN at 8:15 p.m. (while Buck and Aikman work Philadelphia-Tampa Bay on ABC at 7:15 p.m.);
3). The Oct. 1 Jacksonville-Atlanta game in London on ESPN’s streaming service;
4) A Dec. 11 Monday night game -- either Packers-Giants or far more likely, Dolphins-Titans; and
5). A game on the final Saturday of the regular season.
▪ Here are this weekend’s NFL maps and college football TV schedule. CBS is giving WFOR 4 the Chiefs-Jaguars game instead of Las Vegas-Buffalo at 1 p.m. Sunday.
