Thursday Night Football will have a video-game feel in Week 11.
NBC announced its plans to utilize its dual SkyCam for the primary viewing of the Tennessee Titans versus Pittsburgh Steelers matchup on Nov. 16.
"We are excited to present a game with the majority of live-action coverage coming from SkyCam," said Fred Gaudelli, Executive Producer of NBC Sunday Night Football and Thursday Night Football, via Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official team website.
NBC utilized the SkyCam during a Week 7 tilt between the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons, when a heavy fog rolled into Foxboro, obscuring the normal camera angle. The viewing experience drew rave reviews, leading to NBC tinkering with its normal broadcast approach.
"After pivoting out of necessity to SkyCam in the New England fog, we've been aggressively planning and testing with the intent of utilizing the system for a full game," said Gaudelli. "We'll still have our full complement of cameras and will revert to traditional coverage when situations dictate, but the primary viewing experience of the game will come from the SkyCam angle."
By pivoting to the SkyCam, NBC hopes to attract younger viewers who grew up playing "Madden" video games, which employs a view from behind the quarterback.
"Younger generations of NFL fans have grown accustomed to watching football from this angle through their love of video games. This telecast will have a look and feel akin to that experience," Gaudelli said.
In a week, we'll see if NBC stumbled onto a way to bring viewers a new and better way to experience an NFL game.
The Thursday Night Football matchup between the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers will be broadcast live on NBC and NFL Network and will be streamed live on Amazon Prime.
