By Richie Zyontz
FOX NFL Lead Producer
Editor’s Be aware: Richie Zyontz has been an NFL producer for FOX since 1994 and is in his twenty third season because the lead producer. He has greater than 40 years of expertise overlaying the league and has produced seven Tremendous Bowls. All through the 2024 NFL season, he’s offering an inside look as FOX’s new No. 1 NFL staff, together with NFL legend Tom Brady, makes its journey towards Tremendous Bowl LIX. Learn extra behind-the-scenes tales from Richie Zyontz right here.
The great thing about sports activities is that it might probably’t be scripted. You by no means know what’s going to ensue.
As we ready for Saturday’s divisional showdown between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, our collective salivary glands have been flowing with expectations.
Then a sport broke out.
However enable me to digress.
For 30 years, FOX has traditionally been the house of the NFC, with occasional matchups throughout conferences.
[Related:Â More from Tom Brady |Â More from Richie Zyontz]
So our crew has noticed some nice division rivalries up shut. Bears and Packers. Cowboys and Eagles. Rams and 49ers, amongst others.
However Ravens and Steelers? Nary a one. For sure, we have been all excited for Saturday’s nationally televised tilt.
The tone and tenor of a rivalry typically begins on the high with the pinnacle coaches. As evidenced in HBO’s good “Laborious Knocks” documentary concerning the AFC North, Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin and Baltimore’s John Harbaugh are in agency management of their groups. They’re the forms of dynamic leaders that our quarterback Tom Brady admires — leaders of males, not merely chalkboard warriors drawing up performs in a classroom.
Longevity is uncommon within the teaching fraternity, however these two are exceptional exceptions.
Tomlin has coached the Steelers for 18 seasons, Harbaugh has led Baltimore for 17 seasons.
They’ve squared off as head coaches 37 instances — in reality, solely Chicago’s George Halas and Inexperienced Bay’s Curly Lambeau have confronted one another extra.
When your names seem on a graphic alongside such legendary figures, your home in historical past is safe.
Earlier than the sport, a fast midfield handshake and hug belied their aggressive fireplace. Familiarity breeds contempt, and regardless of a mutual respect, that aggressive contempt was considerably revealed in our assembly with Harbaugh. He complained about Pittsburgh’s perennial chippy model of play, intimating that Tomlin typically will get his manner with the officers. The tone of voice was much less offended than irritated. Harbaugh exudes a peaceful depth, with no wasted phrases, and trustworthy to the core.
Mike Tomlin (left) and John Harbaugh: A mixture of mutual respect and aggressive contempt. (Photograph by Rob Carr/Getty Photographs)
His counterpart, Tomlin, is extra performative, at instances lighthearted, however all the time open and intensely quotable. He’s a manufacturing crew’s dream, and after doing Steelers video games, we all the time want we had the prospect to see them extra typically.
Earlier than a query is even requested, Tomlin will riff concerning the state of his staff, offering as a lot data and technique as any coach in soccer.
For 2 weeks, our crew had a graphic prepared of Tomlinisms — attention-grabbing and distinctive utterances that Tomlin has supplied up by the years.
Sadly, the timing by no means felt proper to work into the published, so it would go in our again pockets till the subsequent alternative.
And that will get us again to the unique premise — you by no means know what to anticipate as soon as the sport begins. About three hours previous to kickoff, sport referee Invoice Vinovich stopped by our manufacturing truck to say good day. Officers are properly conscious of rivalries. Whereas they do not name the sport any in a different way, they’re on alert to stop the simmering dangerous blood from exploding.
Kyle Van Noy’s hit on Russell Wilson was par for the course in a bodily matchup between AFC North rivals. (Photograph by Patrick Smith/Getty Photographs)
Vinovich stated his crew spent somewhat additional time discussing this throughout their Friday assembly. And so did we. Our cameras have been on alert from the early moments of pregame warmups to search for potential sizzling spots.
In the course of the sport, we knew each deal with pile up might escalate into fisticuffs. And whereas the competition was bodily and difficult, it was uneventful in that respect.
No scrums. No fights.
Tom Brady praises Lamar Jackson & Derrick Henry after Ravens’ win.
Our first style of Steelers vs. Ravens went down as easily as a Koco’s Pub Crab Cake, because the undermanned Yinzers have been overmatched towards Derrick Henry, Lamar Jackson, and a fierce Baltimore move rush.
Jackson is a pressure of nature, gifted with an infinite talent set that even Brady, the best quarterback of all time, marvels at.
One factor that’s all the time fairly cool to witness up shut is the post-game dynamic between Tom and the winner of his “LFG” award. This week the consideration went to Jackson, who beamed like somewhat child as he referred to Tom because the GOAT. The few seconds of banter previous to taping all the time reveals the deep respect Brady has earned together with his former friends.Â
And the trophy ain’t dangerous both.Â
Tom Brady’s LFG Participant of the Recreation: Ravens’ Lamar Jackson | Week 16 DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE
This week our crew will get to witness one other intense rivalry because the Inexperienced Bay Packers journey to Minneapolis to face the Vikings in a sport so essential it was flexed into the late afternoon window (4:25 p.m. ET).
It is solely 47 days till Tremendous Bowl 59, and these two groups are very a lot within the image.
Richie Zyontz has been an NFL producer for FOX since 1994 and is in his twenty third season as lead producer. He boasts greater than 40 years of expertise overlaying the NFL.
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