FOX Sports recently presented Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, a matchup that made history as the most-watched event in U.S. television history with an average of 127.7 million viewers. The game broke the previous record that had been set by CBS Sports during last year’s championship game, and it also accrued record-high streaming viewership on Tubi and NFL digital properties. There were several distinctive aspects of the presentation for the game from FOX Sports producer Richie Zyontz and director Rich Russo. Erin Andrews, who was one of the sideline reporters for the game, detailed how some of the interviews came together on the latest edition of the Calm Down podcast.
Andrews told herself not to screw up the pregame interview with Mahomes upon evincing the environment within the stadium. Even though she has spoken with many football players throughout her broadcasting career, she could discern the atmosphere surrounding the game replete with compelling storylines. Despite the accolades and plaudits on the line, she decided to take a step back and alter her tone surrounding interviews, deciding to convey herself as “a lot more chill.”
“I saw some people [say], ‘You could tell Erin in her Jalen Hurts interview was disappointed that Kansas City didn’t win,’” Andrews recalled reading on the internet. “I actually was trying to slow down, be chill, instead of being like, ‘Jalen, what does it mean..!,’ [so] I was trying to be calm because he’s f*****g calm – he’s not crazy and rah-rah.”
Andrews explained how her producer said that out of the tunnel, the network would have her interview Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes while Tom Rinaldi would speak with Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. Since they were both working from Caesars Superdome, FOX NFL Sunday host Charissa Thompson could see Andrews delivering her some of her reports, and having the chance to work alongside a close friend is something she does not take for granted.
“I always point out my favorite part of Super Bowl – and I’ve said it before on here – is getting to do this job alongside, not always actually in person alongside you, but in parallel, and then to stand on the sidelines with you before you’re about to do your first hit,” Thompson said. “…It’s never, ever lost on me that we get to do this job, just as individuals, but then when we get to do it together and I get to watch you on the world’s biggest stage and you just shine bright just like a diamond, I just am always grateful for that, and I love you.”
Thompson remarked that she was going to be damned either way, articulating that had she decided to exhibit more excitement, there would have been people saying that she was too excited. Moreover, she added that she has empathy for the athletes on this point of not being able to win with the audience no matter what. Andrews concurred with this point and also chastised the crowd for deciding to boo award-winning musician Taylor Swift while she was attending the game. Towards the end of the discussion, she talked about the record-setting viewership and how it was indicative of the NFL being a dominant force of consumption in the sports media landscape.
“Football is king,” Andrews said. “One hundred and twenty-seven million viewers when it was really a blowout just says so much about our sport and how much we love it.”
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