The NFL’s “Thursday Night Football” is already going to look different this season as Amazon becomes the exclusive home for the broadcast on Prime Video. Now the tech giant is looking to mix things up with alternate streams, including one featuring the viral sports content creators Dude Perfect.
Amazon announced Monday that “TNF with Dude Perfect” will be one of multiple alternate stream offerings during the upcoming season.
The content creators are well known for pulling off the seemingly impossible and capturing it all on video. Dude Perfect has attracted 58 million subscribers on YouTube where they show off various sports trick shots, bottle flips, world record attempts and off-the-wall challenges.
“It was essential we differentiated ourselves,” Marie Donoghue, Amazon’s vice president of global sports video, said of the company’s multiple-feed strategy in a Wall Street Journal story.
ESPN took the alternate approach last season for “Monday Night Football” with its ESPN2 broadcast featuring commentary by Peyton and Eli Manning and guests.
Dude Perfect is made up of Tyler Toney, twins Cory and Coby Cotton, Garrett Hilbert, and Cody Jones. Amazon said in a news release that they’ll “bring their energetic flair and legendary shenanigans” to Prime Video and Twitch and offer a new way to enjoy live games.
The quintent first met as college roommates at Texas A&M University and has built a following of more than 100 million across platforms with a brand of family friendly entertainment that also sells out arenas as part of a live tour.
“Thursday Night Football” kicks off Sept. 15 as Prime Video becomes the first streaming service to air a season-long exclusive national broadcast package with the NFL. The 11-year deal includes 15 regular-season games and one preseason game per year. Games will also stream live on Twitch and will be available on over-the-air TV stations in the two home markets of the competing teams.
Amazon attracted play-by-play announcer Al Michaels and analyst Kirk Herbstreit as the main broadcast duo. Former Seattle Seahawks star Richard Sherman will handle pregame, halftime and postgame reporting duties along with Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy tweeted about meeting the broadcast and production teams over the weekend:
