Tonight, Bob Costas speaks with Dallas Cowboys owner and General Manager Jerry Jones while Football Night in America analyst Rodney Harrison interviews Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan and tight end Tony Gonzalez. Since Harrison lives in Atlanta, it makes sense for him to conduct the interviews.
We only have the Atlanta portion. NBC did not provide the Jones interview.
“FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA” PREVIEW – WEEK 9
BOB COSTAS INTERVIEWS JERRY JONES; RODNEY HARRISON INTERVIEWS FALCONS QB MATT RYAN AND TE TONY GONZALEZ
“I’m not really concerned about the respect issue, honestly, I really don’t care. As long as we keep taking care of business, eventually they will take notice.” – Tony Gonzalez on the Falcons getting respect from the media
“I’m constantly trying to improve as a player and hopefully we’ll have our opportunity later in the year to kind of change that.” – Matt Ryan on not winning a playoff gameNEW YORK – November 4, 2012 –Bob Costas interviewed Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, and Rodney Harrison interviewed Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan and TE Tony Gonzalez for tonight’s Week 9 edition of Football Night in America, which will preview Cowboys-Falcons game, and will also include highlights, analysis and reaction to earlier Week 9 games.
Football Night In America, the most-watched pre-game studio show in sports, airs each Sunday at 7 p.m. ET with Costas hosting the program live from inside the stadium. He will be joined on site by Sunday Night Football commentators Al Michaels (play-by-play) and Cris Collinsworth (analyst) as well as NBC NFL analyst Hines Ward for reaction to the afternoon games and to preview tonight’s match-up.
Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from Studio 8G at NBC’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza studios and is joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, Peter King of Sports Illustrated and Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk on NBCSports.com. Carolyn Manno will report from Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. on Giants-Steelers.
INTERVIEWS: A transcript of Costas’ interview with Jones will be available once it airs on Football Night. In the interview, Jones discusses the future of Jason Garrett and Tony Romo and comments on his own tenure as general manager of the Cowboys.
Below are excerpts from Harrison’s interview with Ryan and Gonzalez.
MATT RYAN AND TONY GONZALEZ WITH RODNEY HARRISON
Gonzalez on the Falcons not getting national attention or respect: “I think you just look at last week’s game. We played against Philly, we beat them, we beat a very good Philly team out there, and then all week it’s all about Philly. I’m not really concerned about the respect issue, honestly, I really don’t care. As long as we keep taking care of business, eventually they will take notice.”
Ryan on whether the comparisons to Joe Flacco and Ben Roethlisberger are fair: “It’s always good to be compared to some guys that are playing at a really high level.”
Ryan on not winning a playoff game: “I get that quarterbacks are judged by wins and losses, what you do in the playoffs, and I understand that. From my own perspective, I’m not content with where we are at; I’m not content with where I’m at. I’m constantly trying to improve as a player and hopefully we’ll have our opportunity later in the year to kind of change that.”
Gonzalez on what’s missing in his career: “We all know that, at least if you follow me you know that, I have never won a playoff game. That’s not my goal. A lot of people say ‘Will winning a playoff game, will that make your career ok?’ Well, no. Winning a Super Bowl, that’s the reason I’ve been coming back for the last couple years. That’s what drives me at this point. I’m having a good time with the guys too; this is the most fun I’ve ever had.”
Ryan on convincing Gonzalez, who is 95 percent sure he’ll retire after this season, to continue to play: “You know I think there is a lot in that five percent. Just leave the door open with me a little bit. I’ll be working on it in the off-season.”
Ryan on his favorite receiver: “The open receiver. It’s hard, I am very lucky to have what I think is three number one receivers. I’ve got Julio Jones who’s a young guy and he’s getting better every week. I’ve got Roddy White, who has been to a Pro Bowl the last four years. And I’ve got probably the greatest tight end to ever play the game (Gonzalez).”
That’s all.
