NFL Network & NFL Films Combine for Six Sports Emmy Awards

NFL Films Wins Five Emmy Awards – Tied for Most in a Single Year

NFL Network Wins in Outstanding Short Feature & Sports Promotional Announcement – Episodic Categories

NFL Media – comprised of NFL Network, NFL Films, NFL RedZone, NFL.com and NFL Mobile – won six Sports Emmy Awards, it was announced last night in New York City.

NFL Network won in the Outstanding Short Feature category for NFL GameDay Morning: Immaculate Remembrance, as well as in the Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement – Episodic category for A Football Life: Life Story, which it shared with NFL Films. With the two Emmy Awards, NFL Network increased its total to 12 in its nine-year history.

To view the Emmy Award-winning NFL GameDay Morning: Immaculate Remembrance, visit:

http://on.nfl.com/142lGw3

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NFL Health and Safety Update—May 8, 2013

For the complete release, click here

More Than 50 Former NFL Players to Participate in USA Football’s Heads Up Football Ambassador Clinic

Former NFL players will learn tackling mechanics that reduce helmet contact and serve as Heads Up Football Ambassadors for youth leagues this fall

INDIANAPOLIS — More than 50 former NFL players will convene at Lucas Oil Stadium on Wednesday, May 8, to become trained as Heads Up Football^SM Ambassadors. They will participate in clinics that will reinforce tackling mechanics aimed at reducing helmet contact. The sessions also will feature education on concussion recognition and response and provide instruction on proper helmet and shoulder pad fitting.

The clinic is part of Heads Up Football, a new nationwide USA Football pilot program for the 2013 season dedicated to making the game better and safer for youth players. The former NFL players participating in the clinic will work alongside youth leagues across the nation this fall as mentors, lending support to the Heads Up Football program and reinforcing a culture of safety in youth football.

Among the former NFL players participating in the Heads Up Football clinic are LAVAR ARRINGTON, KEITH BULLUCK, MERRIL HOGE, HARDY NICKERSON and JAKE PLUMMER.

USA Football is the official youth football development partner of the NFL and its 32 teams. More than 1,200 youth football leagues across the U.S., representing more than 250,000 players and 36,000 coaches nationwide, have committed to the health and safety of their young players by adopting Heads Up Football.

For the complete release, click here

NFL Retired Player News – May 2013

The NFL stays in regular contact with its former players, passing along vital information via email each month about benefits and services available to them and their families as well as other notes of interest.

The May 2013 edition of NFL Retired Player News included a list of former players with sons who recently joined NFL teams via the Draft or free agency.

To read the full text of the NFL’s recent letter to former players, please click here.

According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, there are 197 documented sets of father and sons who have played in the NFL. If you’re interested in seeing if some of your former teammates or opponents are on that list, you can visit the HOF’s website by clicking here.

Last week, a number of proud NFL fathers heard their sons’ names called during the 2013 NFL Draft. Several other NFL sons signed on as undrafted free agents

A list of some of the sons who (hopefully) will soon be following in their father’s NFL footsteps:

Guard Kyle Long, son of Raiders defensive tackle Howie Long, was chosen with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. Howie is the first Pro Football Hall of Famer to have two sons drafted by NFL teams. His son Chris, a defensive end, was the No. 2 overall selection of the Rams in 2008.

Owners, Commissioner Goodell & Top Football Executives to Attend NFL Career Development Symposium May 6-8 at Wharton School of Business

Event Will Focus on Interactive Presentations

and Networking Opportunities 

Participants include 21 former NFL players 

Club owners ROBERT KRAFT (Patriots), WOODY JOHNSON (Jets) and DAN ROONEY (Steelers) will join NFL Commissioner ROGER GOODELL and previously announced Jaguars owner SHAD KHAN, Giants owner JOHN MARA and Cardinals president MICHAEL BIDWILL to participate in networking sessions and panels at the NFL Career Development Symposium next week (May 6-8) at the Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania.

“We are pleased to offer this program to provide a diverse group of coaching and front office talent with the tools and networking opportunities to take the next step in their careers,” said Commissioner Goodell. “This symposium will help develop our coaching and front office pipeline and build on the progress we have made over the past decade.”

“It is nice to attach a face to a name,” Mara said. “We are in a results-driven business. We study who is successful around the league. This gives us an opportunity to gain some familiarity with those people.”

Former Bills, Panthers and Colts General Manager BILL POLIAN will address the group on the opening night, while former Steelers Head Coach BILL COWHER will speak on the second night.

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NFL Health and Safety Update—May 1, 2013

For the complete release, click here

NFL Honored for Suicide Prevention Efforts

New York, NY: April 30, 2013 – The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) is honoring the National Football League (NFL) with its prestigious Humanitarian Award at its 25^th annual Lifesavers Dinner on May 8th at the Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. Troy Vincent, former All-Pro defensive back and NFL Senior Vice President of Player Engagement will attend the black-tie gala to accept the award.

In 2012, the league partnered with leading suicide prevention organizations, including AFSP, to launch the NFL Life Line, a website and crisis hotline number as a resource for former and current players, their family members, and all league and team employees.  The website includes an anonymous and confidential self-check quiz and online chat that allows individuals to interact with trained professionals.  The website also lists important information about depression, suicide warning signs and features videos from former players encouraging those in distress to “make the call” for help.

“We know that one of the best ways to prevent suicide is by encouraging those who are struggling with a crisis or feeling depressed to seek help, but too often many people fear reaching out because of shame or embarrassment or because they just don’t know where to turn,” said Robert Gebbia, executive director for AFSP.  “This is why the NFL Life Line is so important. It provides a confidential support system specifically for the NFL family.”

Additionally, the NFL is being recognized for its generous support of neurological research that will help in understanding the impact of traumatic brain injuries on mental health. Read more

NFL Offseason Workout Program Dates Announced

Click here for the full NFL Offseason Workout Program calendar for 2013, including rookie minicamp dates. Voluntary offseason workout programs are intended to provide training, teaching and physical conditioning for players.

OVER 20 MILLION FANS WATCH & FOLLOW THE 2013 NFL DRAFT ON NFL NETWORK, NFL.COM, & NFL MOBILE PROPERTIES

Over seven million viewers watched 2013 NFL Draft coverage on NFL Network

Fueled by 126% increase to NFL Mobile properties, coverage on NFL Digital platforms drew over 13 million fans

NFL Network’s coverage of the 78^th annual NFL Draft resulted in record rating and viewership numbers for the network. NFL Network drew a record total of 7.1 million viewers over the three days (based on a 6-minute qualifier) of the 2013 NFL Draft, a 17% increase over 2012 (6.07 million) and the 5^th consecutive year that NFL Network has increased its total Draft audience.

Over the course of the three days of the draft, NFL Network averaged nearly a million viewers (930k), an increase of 23% over 2012. NFL Network’s viewership numbers were highlighted by Thursday’s coverage of Round 1 which averaged over 1.5 million viewers.

On the digital front, audience to NFL Digital Media’s draft coverage grew to over 13 million unique viewers, a 31% increase over 2012. The digital growth was driven in large part by traffic to NFL Mobile properties, which increased 126% versus last year.

With a record-high 47 hours of live coverage of the three-day event, an extensive talent roster of analysts, reporters and college coaches, and a record number of draft war room cameras providing behind-the-scenes access, NFL Network, NFL.com and NFL Mobile properties provided coverage of the 2013 NFL Draft live from Radio City Music Hall.

(Source: Nielsen Media Research)

23 current & former NFL players to participate in new “NFL Sports Journalism & Communications Boot Camp” May 13-16

Four-day program for current & former players includes “final exam” covering Toledo Mud Hens baseball game

Twenty three current and former NFL players — including 12-year NFL veteran CHARLIE BATCH, 2012 Patriots Hall of Fame inductee TROY BROWN, and 2001 Heisman Trophy winner ERIC CROUCH — will take part in the first-ever NFL Sports Journalism & Communications Boot Camp from May 13-16 at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. With the new longer offseason, the boot camp is one of a record 10 training programs for post-NFL careers that NFL Player Engagement offers to current and former players.

The four-day program will focus on improving each player’s writing skills for newspapers, radio, and the expanding digital media industry. A field exercise at a Toledo Mud Hens home game will include a mock press conference as part of the player’s game coverage.  Players will write and record their own radio commentary as part of one of the other planned exercises.

Faculty for the boot camp will include ED BOUCHETTE (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), PETER KING (Sports Illustrated, NBC), and BARRY WILNER (Associated Press) as well as former NFL players-turned-journalists SOLOMON WILCOTS (CBS, NFL Network), MATT BOWEN (Chicago Tribune), MATT CHATHAM (Boston Herald), and BUCKY BROOKS (NFL.com and NFL Network).

The boot camp is hosted by the BGSU School of Media and Communications and the Sport Management program and was developed with NFL Player Engagement, under the auspices of the Richard A. Maxwell Sport Media Project. Read more