Based on the ratings and ad sales success of its NFL draft and NFL combine coverage, NFL Network is hitting the road with more on-the-ground coverage of training camps.
The NFL-owned TV channel will produce 220 hours of live training camp coverage from July 24 to Aug. 9. Last year, that figure was at 206 hours.
“We need to get outside the studio more,” said Lya Vallat, coordinating producer with NFL Network. “We’re the NFL Network. We should be at every training camp.”
NFL Network executives said they found that last year’s ratings would drop significantly when programs would move from training camps to the studio, so this year, the network is devoting much more coverage to be produced from various training camps across the country.
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NFL Network reporter Jane Slater will be among those on the scene during training camp.
Photo by: NFL NETWORK
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Starting at 10 a.m. ET each day, the channel will air nine hours of “Inside Training Camp” coverage. The coverage will be based at two training camps per day. Overall, NFL Network will produce shows from 26 of 32 team training camps. In the other six camps, including Detroit, Cleveland, New Orleans and Indianapolis, NFL Network will embed reporters who will file reports.
“We’ll hit all 32 teams at some point,” Vallat said. “No other network is making this commitment.”
Added coverage will come from “NFL Total Access” (7 p.m. ET) and “Training Camp Primetime” (8 p.m. ET).
As part of its coverage, NFL Network will send several of its analysts to the camps of the teams where they starred. Called “Back 2 Camp,” it will send Kurt Warner to the Cardinals (July 26), Terrell Davis to the Broncos (July 28), Steve Smith Sr. to the Ravens (July 31) and LaDainian Tomlinson to the Chargers (Aug. 2).
NFL Network also will debut a media cruiser this summer. Described as “something out of the ‘Transformers,’” by Rick Qualliotine, NFL Network’s vice president of emerging production platforms and systems, the cruiser quickly and cost efficiently takes entire sets — everything from lighting to the control room — from one location to another. This will allow NFL Network talent to produce a more standard look for stand-ups from training camps.
The cruiser debuts at the Pro Football Hall of Fame Aug. 4 for the morning show, “Good Morning Football,” and will be used throughout “Thursday Night Football,” Qualliotine said.
In addition to making it easier to move the network’s sets around, Qualliotine said the truck will pay for itself within a couple of years, as NFL Network will save money on set rentals. Qualliotine would not say how much the new cruiser costs.
