Let’s provide the NBC press release officially announcing its AFC-NFC Wild Card Saturday doubleheader. On Saturday, January 7, NBC will have Cincinnati at Houston at 4:30 p.m. ET followed by Detroit at New Orleans at 8 p.m. ET. Tom Hammond, Mike Mayock and Alex Flanagan will be in Houston. Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya will call the nightcap in the Big Easy.
NBC has its official announcement below.
NBC’S WILD CARD SATURDAY DOUBLEHEADER: BENGALS AT TEXANS AND LIONS AT SAINTS
Coverage Begins with Special Football Night in America, Saturday at 4 pm ET
NEW YORK – Jan. 1, 2012 – The National Football League announced tonight that NBC will broadcast the Cincinnati Bengals at the Houston Texans at 4:30 p.m. ET and the Detroit Lions at the New Orleans Saints at 8 p.m. ET as its Wild Card doubleheader this Saturday. NBC’s live coverage of NFL Wild Card Saturday doubleheader starts at 4 p.m. ET with a special edition of Football Night in America co-hosted by Bob Costas and Dan Patrick, who are 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.
The Sunday Night Football broadcast team of Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya will call Lions-Saints while the NBC Notre Dame Football broadcast team of Tom Hammond, Mike Mayock and Alex Flanagan will call Bengals-Texans.
The Sunday Night Football production team of Fred Gaudelli (producer) and Drew Esocoff (director) will produce Lions-Saints. Sunday Night Football, the most-watched and highest-rated show on primetime television, has won the Emmy for Outstanding Live Sports Series in each of the last three seasons.
NBC Notre Dame Football producer Rob Hyland, who worked as the SNF replay producer for three years under Gaudelli, will produce Bengals-Texans. Artie Kempner, who directs NFL games for NFL Network and Fox, and who directed Super Bowl XLII, will direct the game. Tommy Roy, who served as executive producer for four NBC Super Bowl broadcasts and is one of the most decorated sports producers in history, will serve as executive producer for the afternoon game.
Hammond, Mayock and Flanagan worked last year’s Saints-Seahawks Wild Card Saturday game on NBC with Roy, Hyland and Kempner.
On Sunday, the winner of the Dallas Cowboys/New York Giants hosts the Atlanta Falcons on Fox at 1 p.m. ET and the Denver Broncos host the Pittsburgh Steelers on CBS at 4:30 p.m. ET.
That will do it. With no Bob Costas halftime commentary on Sunday Night Football, we’re now free to give you the Sports Media Predictions for 2012.
