ESPN Football Today
| Genre |
NFL American Football |
|---|---|
| Running time | 40 minutes - 1 hour |
| Country |
 United States |
| Home station | ESPN Radio |
| Starring | Ian Fitzsimmons |
ESPN Football Today is a daily American podcast, produced by ESPN Radio, that covers American Football, primarily the National Football League. The podcast is hosted by and Ian Fitzsimmons and frequently features interviews with other ESPN football commentators. The podcast is made available daily alongside the Fantasy Focus (Podcast) during the 2015 season.
History
The podcast was originally called the 1st and Fifteen Podcast, and until 2010 it was hosted by Jeremy Green. From 2010 until early 2013, the podcast was hosted by Ross Tucker and Matt Williamson, and produced by Jay Soderberg. The podcast generally occurred Monday through Friday during the regular season and playoffs, and once or twice a week during the offseason. In 2010, Tucker hosted on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, with Williamson hosting on Tuesdays and Fridays. During the 2011 offseason, the podcast generally occurred on Mondays and Thursdays, with Williamson and Tucker as co-hosts, and during the 2011 and 2012 regular season Tucker was the lead host but was joined by Williamson several times a week. ESPN insider Adam Schefter was a regular guest each Thursday during the 2011 regular season. Because his contract with ESPN had ended, Ross Tucker did not host Football Today between February 22 and May 16, 2012, with Williamson handling hosting duties. but he later returned to hosting duties. After Tucker returned to the podcast (under a new contract), he hosted the show on Mondays and Williamson hosted on Fridays for the remainder of the offseason. Ross Tucker left the podcast in February 2013 and Matt Williamson's last podcast was on April 1, 2013. On April 16, 2013, Ross Tucker started a new football themed podcast for Sports USA Radio, the "Ross Tucker Football Podcast".[1] The Football Today podcast was on hiatus after Williamson's departure but returned on May 23, 2013 with Robert Flores and Matt Williamson as hosts, and with a substantially different format. The vocal producer is now Daniel Dopp, affectionately nicknamed "3 D".[2] On December 18, 2015, Williamson announced that he will be leaving the podcast when his ESPN contract expires at the end of 2015. He was replaced with Ian Fitzsimmons, who became the sole host when Robert Flores left ESPN.
Segments
These segments were part of the podcast while Ross Tucker and Matt Williamson hosted it. Many of them have not returned since Robert Flores began hosting.
Quick Slants
Daily coverage of NFL news and updates.
Ross Tucker's Power Rankings
This is a segment that appeared on Tuesday's during the Tucker era.
Tuck's Takes
Ross Tucker's analysis of news and tactics in the NFL, including picks for the weekend's games. This did not continue into the next eras.
Schef's Specialties
The "Quick Slants" on Thursdays during the 2011 season featured Adam Schefter. This segment was also known as "Sidekick Thursday".
Audibles
This segment consisted of responding to fan emails. This segment usually occurs on Wednesday's and is known as "Wetted Wednesday" as appointed by Jay Soderberg on a mispronunciation. Fitzsimmons does not regularly answer listener e-mails.
Go Deep
A common segment during the Tucker era featuring a guest interview or in-depth analysis.
Football 201
Ross and Matt went in depth about a certain facet of football (usually suggested by a listener via e-mail) such as offensive line blocking schemes or differing strength and conditioning schemes around the NFL. This segment did not continue into the Flores era.