Morning Madness: Revisiting Sunday NFL Countdown’s Stellar Week 1 Reporting Of Multiple Breaking Stories

“The rundown was torn up, and we were essentially building the plane as we flew it. It never felt like panic, because we had the right people in place.”

Those are words of Sunday NFL Countdown coordinating producer, Drew Gallagher, as he reflected on a frenetic start to the 2024 NFL season.

The long-running, highly respected show is coming off a Sept. 8 season debut that left senior NFL insider Adam Schefter feeling like his “head was going to combust.”

Luckily for Gallagher, ESPN, and fans, Schefter, along with the Countdown production crew and a slew of reporters and analysts, are built for days like last Sunday.

“Going into Sunday, I knew that everything surrounding [Cincinnati Bengals receiver] Ja’Marr Chase and [Dallas Cowboys quarterback] Dak Prescott was up in the air,” Schefter said.

“I couldn’t have predicted some of the other things that would develop.”

As soon as Schefter walked into the studio around 7:45 a.m. ET, he immediately told Gallagher, producer Chad Minutillo, and first-year host Mike Greenberg, that this was the most “unpredictable Week 1 we have ever had – there has never been anything like it.”  

Right off the bat, Schefter prepared viewers that major news could be coming, telling Greenberg and returning analysts Tedy Bruschi, Randy Moss, Rex Ryan and Alex Smith, “…there has never been a Week 1 where there has been more big stories that are unsettled going into opening kickoffs.”  

For more than 50 minutes, the show went along mostly as planned.

At 10:53 a.m., Schefter first reported on the local police detainment of Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill for allegedly speeding while driving to Hard Rock Stadium. Schefter and ESPN NFL national reporter Jeff Darlington (who was at the stadium) first exchanged text messages about the developing situation.

From that point until sign-off at 1 p.m., it was off to the races.

A veteran reporter, Darlington’s journalistic instincts took over, and he quickly found Hill’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, who, because of his prior, longstanding relationship with Darlington, agreed to do a live interview (see below) on Sunday NFL Countdown.

Knowing the value in the information Rosenhaus could provide to viewers, the production team was able to get the duo live on ESPN within minutes.

“In that moment, it becomes a fact-finding mission,” said Darlington, who conducted the live Rosenhaus interview from the field. “It is not about shaping anybody else’s opinion other than with the facts that I can bring them.”

This was not Darlington’s first rodeo with an early morning auto incident involving a star professional athlete. He had also been all over the reporting of Scottie Scheffler’s arrest before the PGA Championship in May.

Within an approximate 45-minute timespan, there were five stories unfolding on Sunday NFL Countdown (including the news about Tyreek Hill) thanks to Schefter: Chase and the Bengals would not be reaching a contract deal (however, he would be active); Prescott receiving a record-breaking contract extension from the Cowboys; quarterback Justin Fields would be starting for the Pittsburgh Steelers over veteran Russell Wilson; rapper Kendrick Lamar would be the Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show performer.

ESPN’s reputation and reliability as the most trusted brand in sports were on full display as Sunday NFL Countdown’s audience spiked to 1.5 million viewers as the breaking news unfolded on Sunday. 

“In all my nine years producing the show, I’ve never seen a busier news-filled Sunday,” said Minutillo. “I’m so proud of our entire team on set, behind the scenes, and out in the field. We all live for those moments, and it was a true display of our teamwork when it matters most.”

Throughout the show, Gallagher described his colleagues, specifically Minutillo, as “calm and in control” as he communicated clearly on show traffic to the commentators on-set and in the control room.

All of these folks did an incredible job producing from their own position, which allowed the entire team to excel.
– Coordinating producer Drew Gallagher on the Sunday NFL Countdown crew’s teamwork

  
Director Jay Hammond and associate director Jonathan Weaver worked in lockstep with Minutillo to follow along and present the show without the benefit of a clear rundown while producerSusan Smith worked with the reporters and field producers onsite to make sure they were in camera position.

The tape and graphics producers and production assistants were lightning-quick to keep up with the appropriate video and graphics, with researcher Evan Kaplan and sports scout Jacob Nierob quickly feeding the producers, graphics producers, and on-air talent valuable information.

Notably, ESPN’s feature team was even able to edit a special version of Monday Night Football analyst Troy Aikman’s interview with Dak Prescott, allowing for a conversation with the newly-paid NFL quarterback to be available to fans instantly.

“All of these folks did an incredible job producing from their own position, which allowed the entire team to excel,” said Gallagher.

On The Adam Schefter Podcast Schefter noted that any one of the stories he was breaking would’ve been enough to be the foundation of an entire edition of Sunday NFL Countdown.

“We usually get three or four of these massive news stories a year,” said Schefter. “We had five in the same hour.”

When Schefter was asked if he wished anything were different, he had an immediate answer – wishing that his dear friend, and former colleague, the late Chris Mortensen, was around to share in the excitement.

“I wish I could talk and laugh about this day with Mort,” said Schefter. “He would’ve enjoyed every second of it.”