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 ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
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...
10/06/2026
DAZN-owned digital-media company launches three fan-first series leaning into cr...
10/06/2026
Clear-Com has announced the appointment of Jason Dino as Southwest Regional Sales Manager USA, covering Southern California and the Southwest region. Dino joins...
10/06/2026
An 11% decrease in number of global broadcast deals reflects the organization...
10/06/2026
The Women Without Boundaries Awards recognize women whose work is advancing the future of media, broadcast, AV, workplace technology, digital experience, and re...
10/06/2026
Today is match day minus two for FIFA and HBS. On Thursday, there will be two ma...
10/06/2026
SES is supporting broadcast distribution of the world's biggest football tou...
10/06/2026
NDI has announced that BirdDog has become the first hardware manufacturer to achieve full NDI 6.3 compatibility across its complete lineup of cameras, encoders,...
10/06/2026
Vince Caputo and Scott Carter, winners of the 2026 Sports Emmy for Outstanding Post Produced Audio have been announced as presenters for the 2026 SVG Advanced A...
10/06/2026
FOX One today unveiled a slate of new product features and enhancements designed to elevate the viewing experience for fans on the official streaming platform o...
10/06/2026
Primary production partners Dome Productions and Raycom Sports once again played...
10/06/2026
The Women in Sports Filmmaking Experienceship is an immersive professional devel...
10/06/2026
The league has expanded its HSAN architecture for the NBA Finals to manage more ...
10/06/2026
The inaugural MoonPay X Games League (XGL) Winter Draft will take place Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at Cosm Los Angeles from 7-9 p.m. PT. The event will strea...
10/06/2026
The University of Oklahoma (OU) Athletics Department and Learfield have announce...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has released TR-06-4 Part 8, a new specification for RIST Satellite-Hybrid: Out-of-Band Method. The specification creates a mecha...
10/06/2026
Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, supporting live medical proc...
10/06/2026
A still from The Doom Generation by Gregg Araki (Courtesy of Sundance Institute)
By Lucy Spicer
Have you checked out our Sundance Film Festival 101 list yet...
10/06/2026
Get Hands-On with Interfaces & Mic Preamp Brands
If youre after a new interface or preamp, then GearExpo UK is the place to be! Well have a whole host of au...
10/06/2026
November 13-14 2026, The Midway, San Francisco
Following their recent rebranding, MONO Music Conference (formerly Music Expo) have officially announced thei...
10/06/2026
Debut instrument free for limited time
deFORM is the debut release from newly founded developer ebbandflow, and it's being offered as a free download fo...
10/06/2026
Alone Australia Season 4: Meet the Cast
10 June, 2026
Media releases
WATCH THE TRAILER
Smash-hit survival series Alone Australia drops its highly anticipa...
10/06/2026
DEADLY THEN, DEADLY NOW, DEADLY ALWAYS: SBS & NITV IGNITE NAIDOC WEEK 2026 WITH ...
10/06/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF advance laser-based drone defense with THORIS LCS Rohde & Schwarz is showcasing THORIS at ILA 2026: A sovereign, end to end counter...
10/06/2026
MAHLE and Rohde & Schwarz develop application for sensor testing of modern drive...
10/06/2026
Production and Development Funding supports the creation of compelling, commercially viable, artistic and culturally relevant South African screen content. Deve...
10/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
10/06/2026
Accedo, Humans not Robots, and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) have announced the launch of Ecoflow X. Formerly an IBC Accelerator project, ...
10/06/2026
Frequency, the engine powering the world's leading streaming television channels, today announced that James Smith has joined the company as General Manager...
10/06/2026
At the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for live medical procedures s...
10/06/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media, and entertainment managed services, today announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform powered by Or...
10/06/2026
Klvr will showcase how venues, integrators and production teams are rethinking disposable battery usage at InfoComm 2026 (Las Vegas, June 17-19, booth #N6311). ...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has further enhanced the Reliable Internet Streaming Transport (RIST) protocol by incorporating a new feature, RIST Satellite-Hyb...
10/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
10/06/2026
10 Jun 2026
VEON's Banglalink Brings Every World Cup 2026 Match to Football...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
How to watch every ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 match live on Sky Sports
Where is the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 availabl...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
P RLA brings first-ever Beautifully Clean Oral Care'...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
Sky reveals pulse-pounding first teaser trailer for upco...
10/06/2026
Wuppertal June 10, 2026
Riedel Artist at the Heart of the 14th World Live Neurovascular ConferenceAt the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Li...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Showcases New Mobile Experience, Collections and Games Vision in APAC
Product
10 June 2026
GlobalSouth KoreaJapan
Link copied to c...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Ready to Join? The Netflix Fan Club Arrives at Cannes Lions
Business
10 June 2026
Global
Link copied to clipboard
Download all assets
N...
10/06/2026
Chemists snap together complex 3D molecules from highly reactive radicals-without losing their shape Scripps Research team develops stereoretentive radical-radi...
09/06/2026
Kiswe announces an expanded long-term partnership with ONE Championship (ONE), t...
09/06/2026
SiriusXM will broadcast FOX Sports' English-language commentary for all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches from June 11 through July 19, available to subscribe...
09/06/2026
EVS has announced it is changing its corporate name from EVS Broadcast Equipment to EVS, reflecting the company's expanded portfolio beyond broadcast equipm...
09/06/2026
Fox Corporation and the NFL have announced a multi-year agreement to bring NFL c...
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 
