A Football Life
| A Football Life | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Created by | NFL Films NFL Network |
| Narrated by | Josh Charles[1] |
| Theme music composer | David Robidoux[2] |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 74 |
| Original release | |
| Network | NFL Network |
| Release | September 15, 2011 – Present |
A Football Life is a documentary series developed by NFL Films and aired on NFL Network that documents the lives of select National Football League players, coaches, owners, and teams. Friends, teammates, family members and other players and coaches associated with the subjects are interviewed.[3]
History
The name of the series originated in a quote from Steve Sabol of NFL Films:[4]
For a company that prides itself on telling good stories, this is one hell of a story. Dad makes the Hall of Fame. Son's going to be his presenter. Son gets a brain tumor. Now the story is, Is the son going to be there? Will the son make it? Who knows? I could be around until the Super Bowl in New York [2014]. But I've had a lot of time to think ... So they talk about heaven, and I don't know what is waiting for me up there. But I can tell you this: Nothing will happen up there that can duplicate my life down here. That life cannot be better than the one I've lived down here, the football life. It's been perfect.
Originating as an NFL Network special on the career of Bill Parcells in November 2010,[5] it premiered as an episodic series on September 15, 2011, with the first part of Bill Belichick's documentary.[6] The documentary was viewed by about 657,000 viewers, the most-watched documentary in NFL Network's history, and was the second-most watched program in Boston at the time with 151,000 viewers, trailing behind a Boston Red Sox game.[7] Season One was eventually released on DVD.[8]
Season Two began on September 12, 2012, with The Faces of Tebow.[9]
The series was nominated for an Emmy Award for "Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology"[10] and "Outstanding Promotional Announcement – Episodic" for Belichick's episode[11] in 2012.[12]
Episodes
Season One
Source:[13]
| No. | Subject | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill Belichick | September 15, 2011 |
| 2 | September 22, 2011 | |
| 3 | Reggie White & Jerome Brown | September 29, 2011 |
| 4 | Kurt Warner | October 6, 2011 |
| 5 | Walter Payton | October 13, 2011 |
| 6 | Ed Sabol | October 20, 2011 |
| 7 | Mike Ditka | October 27, 2011 |
| 8 | Tom Landry | November 3, 2011 |
| 9 | Al Davis | November 11, 2011 |
Season Two
| No. | Subject | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tim Tebow | September 12, 2012 |
| 2 | Ray Lewis | September 19, 2012 |
| 3 | Tom Coughlin | September 26, 2012 |
| 4 | Cleveland '95 | October 3, 2012 |
| 5 | The Fearsome Foursome | October 10, 2012 |
| 6 | Steve McNair | October 17, 2012 |
| 7 | Eddie DeBartolo | October 24, 2012 |
| 8 | Chris Spielman | October 31, 2012 |
| 9 | Jimmy Johnson | November 7, 2012 |
| 10 | John Riggins | November 21, 2012 |
| 11 | Barry Sanders | December 5, 2012 |
| 12 | Marcus Allen | December 12, 2012 |
| 13 | The Immaculate Reception | December 19, 2012 |
Season Three
| No. | Subject | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LaDainian Tomlinson | September 3, 2013 |
| 2 | Don Shula | September 10, 2013 |
| 3 | Darrelle Revis | September 17, 2013 |
| 4 | Derrick Thomas | September 24, 2013 |
| 5 | Steve Sabol | October 1, 2013 |
| 6 | Matt Millen | October 8, 2013 |
| 7 | Michael Strahan | October 15, 2013 |
| 8 | Pat Summerall | October 22, 2013 |
| 9 | Warren Sapp | October 29, 2013 |
| 10 | Randall Cunningham | November 5, 2013 |
| 11 | Cris Carter | November 12, 2013 |
| 12 | The Forward Pass | November 19, 2013 |
| 13 | Steve Gleason | November 26, 2013 |
| 14 | The Great Wall of Dallas | December 3, 2013 |
| 15 | Houston '93 | December 10, 2013 |
| 16 | Marty Schottenheimer | December 17, 2013 |
| 17 | Vince Lombardi | December 24, 2013 |
| 18 | December 31, 2013 | |
| 19 | Tiki & Ronde Barber | January 7, 2014 |
| 20 | Bill Parcells | January 14, 2014 |
| 21 | Jerry Smith | January 21, 2014 |
| 22 | Jerry Rice | January 28, 2014 |
Season Four
Season Four was announced for September 10, 2014.[20][21]
| No. | Subject | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Mean Joe" Greene | September 12, 2014 |
| 2 | Brandon Marshall | September 19, 2014 |
| 3 | Sean Taylor | September 26, 2014 |
| 4 | Warren Moon | October 3, 2014 |
| 5 | Eric Dickerson | October 10, 2014 |
| 6 | Doug Flutie | October 17, 2014 |
| 7 | Terrell Davis | October 24, 2014 |
| 8 | Ricky Williams | October 31, 2014 |
| 9 | Earl Campbell | November 7, 2014 |
| 10 | Csonka, Kiick & Morris | November 14, 2014 |
| 11 | Lyle Alzado | November 21, 2014 |
| 12 | Dick Butkus & Gale Sayers | November 28, 2014 |
| 13 | Roger Staubach | December 5, 2014 |
| 14 | Keenan McCardell & Jimmy Smith | December 19, 2014 |
| 15 | 2006 Rose Bowl | January 2, 2015 |
| 16 | Bill Walsh | January 23, 2015 |
| 17 | Joe Namath | January 30, 2015 |
Season Five
Season Five began on September 18 at 9 pm, and it had 13 new episodes including Terrell Owens, Dick Vermeil, Paul Brown, and more.[22]
| No. | Subject | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christian Okoye | September 18, 2015 |
| 2 | Dexter Manley | September 25, 2015 |
| 3 | Jerome Bettis | October 2, 2015 |
| 4 | Terrell Owens | October 9, 2015 |
| 5 | Alan Page | October 16, 2015 |
| 6 | Steve Largent | October 23, 2015 |
| 7 | Dick Vermeil | October 30, 2015 |
| 8 | Paul Brown | November 6, 2015 |
| 9 | Mike Singletary | November 13, 2015 |
| 10 | Charles Haley | November 19, 2015 |
| 11 | Bruce Arians | December 11, 2015 |
| 12 | Marshall Faulk | December 18, 2015 |
| 13 | Ken Stabler | December 25, 2015 |
Season Six
Season Six premieres Friday, September 16 at 9:00 PM ET and will air 13 new episodes starting with the story of Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Curtis Martin. Other episodes will include Brett Favre, Chuck Noll, Jim Brown, and more.[23]
| No. | Subject | Original air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Curtis Martin | September 16, 2016 |
| 2 | Rodney Harrison | September 23, 2016 |
| 3 | Chad Johnson | September 30, 2016 |
| 4 | Steve Young | October 7, 2016 |
| 5 | Brett Favre | October 21, 2016[a] |
| 6 | Pat Tillman | October 28, 2016 |
| 7 | Michael Vick | November 4, 2016 |
| 8 | Jim Brown | November 10, 2016 |
| 9 | Steve Smith Sr. | November 18, 2016 |
| 10 | Chuck Noll | November 25, 2016 |
| 11 | Troy Aikman | December 2, 2016 |
| 12 | Charles Woodson | December 9, 2016 |
| 13 | Kevin Greene | December 16, 2016 |
References
- ^ Forsberg, Chris. "Belichick documentary set for NFL Network - New England Patriots Blog - ESPN Boston". Espn.go.com. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "CREDITS". Retrieved 2012-12-08.
- ^ "NFL Network's 'A Football Life' Chronicles the Lives & Legacies of Reggie White & Jerome Brown". Sportsmedianews.com. 2011-09-23. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ Peter King (2011-09-18). "In his brilliance and impact on NFL, Sabol truly lived 'a football life'". SI.com. Retrieved 2012-09-28.
- ^ "Parcells is what documentary says he is". sun-sentinel.com. 2010-11-20. Retrieved 2012-10-17.
- ^ "A Football Life: Bill Belichick". Patriots.com. 2011-08-29. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ ""A Football Life: Bill Belichick" Most-Watched Documentary Ever On NFL Network - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. 2011-09-16. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "NFL Network Presents: A Football Life - Season 1 DVD". NFL Shop. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
- ^ "9/7 – 'The Faces of Tebow' Debuts Sept. 12 on NFL Network | DC Sports Net". Dcsportsnetwork.com. 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2012-09-13.
- ^ "Breaking News - Emmy-Nominated Series "A Football Life" Returns Wednesday, September 12 at 8:00 PM ET on NFL Network". TheFutonCritic.com. 2012-08-28. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ TCIPF Staff (2012-03-20). "NFL Films is nominated for 8 Sports Emmy Awards! : NFL Films Blog". Nflfilms.nfl.com. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "The Emmy Awards - THE NATIONAL TELEVISION ACADEMY ANNOUNCES THE NOMINEES FOR THE 33RD ANNUAL SPORTS EMMY® AWARDS". Emmyonline.tv. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "A Football Life: Complete Episode List". Thetvdb.com. 2011-12-06. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "NFL Network's A FOOTBALL LIFE to Return 9/12". tv.broadwayworld.com. Retrieved 2012-09-11.
- ^ "NFL Network's A Football Life Explores Life, Legacy of Steve McNair Oct. 17". titansonline.com. 2012-10-12. Retrieved 2012-11-01.
- ^ "'A Football Life' preview: LaDainian Tomlinson". National Football League. 2013-08-29. Retrieved 2013-09-01.
- ^ "'A first look at what NFL Films has in store for Season 3 of A Football Life'". Awful Announcing. 2013-09-01. Retrieved 2013-09-02.
- ^ "'A Football Life Season 2013'". TV.com. 2013-09-03. Retrieved 2013-09-04.
- ^ "NFL Network's 'A Football Life' Examines 'The Great Wall of Dallas' Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 9:00 PM ET'". NFLCommunications.com. 2013-11-27. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
- ^ "NFL Films-Produced Series 'A Football Life' & 'America's Game' Return on NFL Network". http://NFLCommunications.com. 2014-08-28. Retrieved 2014-08-29.
{{cite web}}: External link in|work= - ^ "Pro Football Hall of Fame Quarterback Warren Moon Featured on 'A Football Life'". http://NFLCommunications.com. 2014-09-30. Retrieved 2014-10-04.
{{cite web}}: External link in|work= - ^ http://awfulannouncing.com/2015/nfl-networks-a-football-life-returns-with-14-new-episodes.html
- ^ https://nflcommunications.com/Pages/Return-of-%27A-Football-Life%27-and-%27The-Timeline%27-to-NFL-Network-Highlight-25-NFL-Films-Documentaries-for-2016.aspx
- ^ Cain, Brooke (2016-09-03). "What to Watch on Saturday: A look at Brett Favre's 'Football Life'". The News & Observer. Archived from the original on 2016-09-04. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)