NFL Films Coordinating Producer Ken Rodgers said last week on SiriusXM that he "wouldn’t be shocked" if Patriots coach Bill Belichick "chose to do 'Hard Knocks' one day." Rodgers: "Belichick is a huge fan of [late NFL Films President] Steve Sabol and his legacy and NFL Films. A lot of people say, ‘Well, Bill would never do this.’ Coach allowed me to follow him in 2009 when he became the only coach in NFL history at that time to wear a microphone during every single game of a season. So he is totally great with us." He added, "It’s got to be the right situation for him and for us, where that urgency exists and the drive to get somewhere is different than the year before" (BOSTON GLOBE, 6/12).
OUT-SPOKEN: SI.com's Richard Deitsch noted FS Florida and Sun Sports sideline reporter Emily Austen’s sports broadcasting career "is over for now." Austen, who worked on Magic and Rays coverage, last week as a guest on a Facebook Live chat hosted by Barstool Sports "disparaged people of Asian, Jewish and Mexican heritage during a 35-minute roundtable chat." She also called Cavaliers F Kevin Love a "'little b----' multiple times for good measure." Fox Sports in a statement "called the comments 'insensitive' and 'derogatory,' and that Austen was no longer scheduled to appear on its airwaves" (SI.com, 6/12).
STAYING HIP? In Seattle, Rachel Lerman noted World Golf HOFer Annika Sorenstam is "jumping into the app space with Fundu, an app that helps users explore activities, food and nightlife in any city where they travel." The app "takes into account people’s favorite activities, and suggests curated things to do nearby." Fundu "started with a soft launch" in Vancouver, and then "chose Seattle as its first city to fully launch the app" (SEATTLETIMES.com, 6/10).
