CBS will have 48 cameras in Las Vegas that have super slow motion capabilities getty images
CBS Sports will “utilize 165 cameras and new technology,” during Super Bowl LVIII, according to Mick Akers of the LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL. Cameras will “be set up in and around Allegiant Stadium,” as well as at the network’s Super Bowl television set “stationed at the Fountains of Bellagio.” And for the first time, CBS will “broadcast the game to the masses in 1080p high dynamic range and 4K HDR.” Plans call for “48 cameras with super slow-motion capability, including 24 4K zoom extraction cameras,” to provide different angles inside Allegiant Stadium, including from the “ceiling, along the goal lines and embedded inside the end zone pylons.” The enhanced 4K zoom “allows for better replay capabilities” and will “give officials a closer look at the game’s most crucial plays, with higher resolution and enhanced detail.” Akers noted CBS will “utilize three sky cams, two fly cams, including a ‘trolley cam,’ and three drones between the stadium and areas of the Strip.” There will be “23 augmented reality cameras” in use during the Super Bowl, with “11 to be used during the CBS broadcast, eight during the Nickelodeon alternative broadcast and four at the network’s set at the Fountains of Bellagio” (
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 2/1).
JUST KICKING IT: YAHOO SPORTS’s Jeff Eisenberg noted CBS is unveiling the “Doink Camera,” enabling its broadcast to “capture unprecedented angles of field goals and extra points” at Allegiant Stadium. CBS Sports VP/Remote Technical Operations Jason Cohen said that the uprights in both end zones will have three “Doink Cameras” apiece, “each facing the field at different angles” to allow the ability to provide a “unique perspective of more than just” the kicks. The process of securing the NFL’s permission to use the “Doink Cameras” began “immediately after last year’s Super Bowl.” CBS had to “draw up engineering plans to prove to the league that the integrity of the goalposts wouldn’t be affected.” The network tested the “Doink Cameras” during an Aug. 19 preseason game between the Jets and Bucs and during an October regular-season game at Allegiant Stadium. The results “were encouraging enough for CBS to move forward” with its plans for Super Bowl Sunday (YAHOO SPORTS, 2/1).
DON’T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT: In Chicago, Jeff Agrest questioned “which Tony Romo will we get” -- the “insightful, knowledgeable and sharp Romo, or the disjointed, blathering and unprepared Romo?” The CBS color analyst has had “some embarrassing moments that should worry” the network, as the “quirks viewers found endearing before are annoying now.” And as for his analysis, Romo “no longer has recency in his favor.” When he joined CBS, he was months removed from being with the Cowboys. Seven years later, he “needs to better prepare for broadcasts.” When he walked off the field and right into the broadcast booth in 2017, Romo “was a revelation.” He still “has the youthful enthusiasm he had then,” and he is “still capable of providing quality commentary.” But Agrest wrote Romo’s “needless comments often overshadow the worthy ones.” His job “isn’t in jeopardy, and his performance won’t affect viewership.” But CBS “can’t like seeing its ‘Romostradamus’ get roasted after games.” The Super Bowl “offers him the chance to sway public opinion back in his favor” (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/1).
