NFL Kickoff 2020: In 50th-Anniversary Season, Monday Night Football Has a Fresh Look in Front of, Behind the Camera With a new producer, ESPN adjusts to a COVID-friendly onsite presence By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Monday, September 14, 2020 - 3:05 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
It's a milestone year for one of sports television's most iconic properties. Monday Night Football enters its 50th-anniversary season when it premieres tonight with an opening-week doubleheader (Pittsburgh Steelers-New York Giants, 7 p.m. ET and Tennessee Titans-Denver Broncos, 10 p.m., both on ESPN). However, while ESPN will honor the legacy of MNF, 2020 is undoubtedly the beginning of a new era for one of the longest-running series in TV.
Much will be made of the entirely new broadcast booth - play-by-play man Steve Levy and analysts Brian Griese and Louis Riddick - but the production truck's front bench also features a new face: Phil Dean takes the helm as producer for the first time, joining second-year director Jimmy Platt.
ESPN director Jimmy Platt calls the shots during a dress rehearsal for Monday Night Football earlier this month. The MNF crew hosted this dress rehearsal on the ESPN main campus in Bristol, CT.
These new faces in the truck may have missed the benefit of a handful of practice reps in the preseason, ESPN EVP, Event and Studio Production, Stephanie Druly says, I think it's really interesting to get a fresh set of eyes. Those two guys are super-talented. They're also like the two nicest people in the world and will build this team camaraderie very quickly. I know they've already started to do that. I think it's going to take real reps, though; it's just the reality. It's like playing the game: until you hit the field, you don't know. But everybody has been set up to succeed in really challenging circumstances.
Dean is no stranger to big-time broadcasts. He's a veteran of the industry of nearly 30 years and has been one of ESPN's top producers since 1999, when he was elevated to the college-football circuit. He has produced an annual national semifinal game each season since the inception of the College Football Playoffs in 2014 and has produced numerous ESPN Saturday Primetime college football games.
Earlier this month, the new MNF crew did get together to participate in a dress rehearsal on the ESPN campus in Bristol, CT, allowing the on-air talent and above-the-line and below-the-line crew to begin to create some of that all important chemistry.
Inside the Monday Night Football dress rehearsal . @espnSteveLevy @briangriese @LRiddickESPN @ESPNNFL pic.twitter.com/bVD9sNJGA5
Derek Volner (@DerekVolner) September 9, 2020
The onsite presence, though scaled back for safety reasons, is still substantial. Druly estimates that about 130 people will be onsite each week, compared with about 225 last year.
Some key positions in the truck- perhaps most notably, graphics -will be run from Bristol. This year's MNF product features the second year of a comprehensive graphics redesign that garnered the network praise this summer. The project helped ESPN sweep the Sports Emmys graphics awards, claiming trophies in Outstanding Live Graphic Design and Outstanding Post-Produced Graphic Design.
SVG ON DEMAND: ESPN's Spike Szykowny on the Arduous Process of Redeveloping Monday Night Football s Graphics
The new MNF on-air team will be onsite each week but will be in a spread-out, socially distant booth. In addition, positions like Levy's spotter will be working with him remotely over a video call.
There are things that you can't replicate in a conference room or in an audio booth, Druly explains. Those things we're going to have to feel out as we go, but we're prepared for it. I'm really proud of what our team has done to prepare for the curveballs that distancing has thrown at us.
She adds that ESPN is working with the league to integrate enhanced crowd audio (which will be pumped into empty stadiums by the in-venue video crews) and the virtual-fan elements seen on many of the other NFL broadcasts through Week 1. ESPN also aggressively used that virtual-fan integration during the remote NFL Draft in April.
We're going to learn as we go, says Druly, but I know we're really, really well-positioned right now.
Stay tuned to SVG for more in-depth coverage of ESPN's Monday Night Football operations in the coming weeks.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
12/05/2026
CVP, one of Europe's leading suppliers of professional video and broadcast solutions, has appointed Randy Koeman as Sales Manager, Netherlands, marking anot...
12/05/2026
Taiwan Television has expanded its HD content ingest workflow capabilities by investing in the PlayBox Neo Suite - a leading multi-channel multi-server UHD/HD/S...
12/05/2026
Jigsaw24 is strengthening its media team with the appointment of Tom Laker as Client Director and Ashish Chauhan as Project Manager. These strategic hires bring...
12/05/2026
Broadcast playout leader showcases hybrid IP infrastructure and workflow automation with Videoland deployment as regional benchmark...
12/05/2026
dzjinius, the all-in-one production management platform for the media and entertainment industry, will showcase its centralised approach to production workflows...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
NUGEN Audio will debut Version 1.1 of DialogCheck, its intelligent dialog intelligibility and compliance tool, at the 2026 Media Production & Technology Show (S...
12/05/2026
The reactive visuals can adapt to any stage or screen setup and comprise 50 layers of Notch content
Today, Disguise announced that its high performance GX 3 m...
12/05/2026
Snapgrid , Snapbag & Airglow Expand Creative Control for the ARRI Modular LED BarFollowing the launch of the ARRI Omnibar, DoPchoice introduces a dedicated li...
12/05/2026
May 12th, 2026 Press Materials Available Here
TRIBECA FESTIVAL UNVEILS 2026 GAMES PROGRAM
Tribeca Celebrates Its 25th Anniversary With World Premieres and Pl...
12/05/2026
May 12th, 2026 Press Materials Available Here
MADONNA BRINGS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF CONFESSIONS II TO 2026 TRIBECA FESTIVAL
The Global Icon Will Unveil a Cine...
12/05/2026
Customer demand for data continues to grow in the first quarter of 2026 at Magya...
NFL Kickoff 2020: In 50th-Anniversary Season, Monday Night Football Has a Fresh Look in Front of, Behind the Camera With a new producer, ESPN adjusts to a COVID-friendly onsite presence By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
