National Football League

Inside the 'A' Team: Packers-Eagles

Published Sep. 15, 2010 5:16 a.m. ET

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The start of an NFL season is like a shot of adrenaline for players, coaches, fans and certainly for those of us involved in covering the games.

As the producer of Fox’s A-Team, I have the privilege of working with Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Pam Oliver, and the responsibility of providing the best possible coverage to you at home.

Week 1: The interviews

Our work began on Friday watching a spirited Eagles practice, then meeting with players and coaches afterwards. Head coach Andy Reid seemed truly excited, at least for him, speaking of his team’s youth and energy, while new starting QB Kevin Kolb appeared completely poised and prepared to take over leadership of the offense after several years as understudy to Donovan McNabb.

After nine years of working with Aikman, I’m continually impressed with the graciousness and understanding he exhibits toward young quarterbacks. Despite his three Super Bowl wins and Hall of Fame status, the beating he took early in his career remains indelibly etched in his mind, so he can empathize with the steep learning curve these guys face. Kolb was likable and forthcoming, and I privately was hoping he’d play well for his sake.

As with most games, the quarterbacks provided an interesting storyline, but perhaps even moreso with Kolb and Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers had to bide his time in Green Bay waiting for the Favre era to end, and now Kolb is entering the harsh spotlight in Philadelphia.

Of all the players we speak with across the league, Aaron Rodgers has quickly become one of our favorites. Honest, open and unpretentious, he says things of substance that truly help us in preparing for the game. We were all quite impressed when he told us of his phone call to Kolb wishing him luck. Like Aikman, he’s been through it, and the quarterback fraternity is a close one.

Reviewing the broadcast

If I had to choose the three most crucial aspects of a good broadcast, they would be balance, timing and instincts. These terms apply to the announcers, those of us in the truck and everyone involved in the telecast. Its easy to follow the ball, but we need to cover play away from the ball as well. On Sunday, I felt I was a little late showing why the Eagles' DeSean Jackson and Brent Celek were non-factors in the game. There is always a cause and effect at work, and it's our job to bring them to light.

Instincts come into play constantly. At home the job looks easy, but behind the scenes there are thousands of decisions to be made in very brief time frames -- decisions that affect everything you see on your TV screens. There will always be some bad ones, you just hope they don’t come at the wrong time. For instance, our associate producers Jake Jolivette and Derek Manning edited a terrific piece about the 1960 champion Eagles. Inserted at the right time means you at home can enjoy it, inserted at the wrong time and it intrudes on the game. In this game, I think we were successful.

Needless to say the game didn’t quite work out for Kolb and the Eagles, as he left with a concussion and two other Eagles are now lost for the season with injuries.

Unlike the players and coaches, we can’t look at a scoreboard to see if we won. Our business is very subjective, but we all left the trucks on Sunday feeling pretty good about our efforts.

Where to next? Week 2

Joe, Troy, Pam and the rest of the NFL on FOX "A Team" will head to the palace in Dallas as the Chicago Bears take on the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, September 19 at 1 p.m. ET.

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