ESPN’S contract prevents Ravens-Texans on DIRECTV (1 Viewer)

[Sheriff66]

This was the reply ESPN sent to me earlier about the game when I complained...

Thank you for contacting ESPN.

Due to the importance of allowing the Houston area to focus on its recovery from the expected arrival of Hurricane Ike on Friday, the Houston Texans' home game Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens has been re-scheduled for Monday night at Reliant Stadium at 7:30 PM Houston time (8:30 PM ET).

The game originally was scheduled to be played on Sunday, September 14 at 3:15 PM Houston Time (4:15 PM ET).

The Texans-Ravens Monday night game will be televised on local CBS stations in the primary and secondary markets of the Texans (Houston, Beaumont-Port Arthur, and Bryan, Texas) and the Ravens (Baltimore; Washington, DC; Salisbury, MD; and Harrisburg, PA).

ESPN has exclusive primetime rights for Monday Night Football. We aplogize for any inconvience this may have caused to DIRECTV subscribers.

sincerely,

ESPN Viewer Response Team

_________________________________________________________

Re:Texans-Ravens game

 

[Tree Fiddy]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

 

[Lobary]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

 

[Lauryn]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

"sensationalizing" is the perfect word for this. it won't be pleasant, but people are freaking out like houston is gonna be leveled or something. things will be fine.

 

[kingmalaki]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.

Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.

Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

"sensationalizing" is the perfect word for this. it won't be pleasant, but people are freaking out like houston is gonna be leveled or something. things will be fine.

The threat to Houston is the damage from strong winds (since the storm is so big) and the loss of power. No power, no game. A lot can happen when your city is being hit with 75-100 mph winds for multiple hours.

 

[Lobary]

I lived through Alicia, I'm well aware of what hurricane winds will do to the power supply. We were without power for less than twelve hours at my house, and that was twenty five years ago when no electrical lines were underground. You seem to be ignoring the timeline: the storm will have passed by tomorrow afternoon, allowing the electrical crews enough time to restore power to the area around Reliant Stadium.

The game will be played as scheduled.

 

[kingmalaki]

I lived through Alicia, I'm well aware of what hurricane winds will do to the power supply. We were without power for less than twelve hours at my house, and that was twenty five years ago when no electrical lines were underground. You seem to be ignoring the timeline: the storm will have passed by tomorrow afternoon, allowing the electrical crews enough time to restore power to the area around Reliant Stadium. The game will be played as scheduled.

I hope you are right, because as you know no A/C here sucks.

 

[Tree Fiddy]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

"sensationalizing" is the perfect word for this. it won't be pleasant, but people are freaking out like houston is gonna be leveled or something. things will be fine.

In my mind its less a matter of actual damage (although it IS a hurricane and could certainly cause some good damage), it's more about public resources and priorities.Simply put, mopping up after a storm and getting thousands of people back home from where they went is and should be a priority over a football game. Hosting a football game requires public safety resources (police, fire, emergency services) that will likely have higher priorities. It's not so much the storm as it is the logistics and wisdom of trying to host a football game for 70,000 fans and the 50,000 cars they will drive to the game while also taking care of storm-related fallout.Remember - the last hurricane that caused a major evacuation out there resulted in 119 people dying - 9 from the storm and 110 from the evacuation - logistics is everything.

 

[bullitt]

Just got this in a email from directv:

NFL SUNDAY TICKET™ UPDATE: BALTIMORE VS. HOUSTON GAME RESCHEDULEDDue to Hurricane Ike, which is expected to impact the Gulf Coast of Texas this weekend, the NFL has rescheduled the game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans for Monday, September 15. As an NFL SUNDAY TICKET™ subscriber, you will be able to watch the game live on Monday night.Baltimore Ravens at Houston TexansMonday, September 158:30 PM ETChannel 717Channel 717-1 (HD)

 

[Varmint]

Just go this message from Bullitt

NFL SUNDAY TICKET™ UPDATE: BALTIMORE VS. HOUSTON GAME RESCHEDULEDDue to Hurricane Ike, which is expected to impact the Gulf Coast of Texas this weekend, the NFL has rescheduled the game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans for Monday, September 15. As an NFL SUNDAY TICKET™ subscriber, you will be able to watch the game live on Monday night.Baltimore Ravens at Houston TexansMonday, September 158:30 PM ETChannel 717Channel 717-1 (HD)

 

[Jon_Moore]

ESPN is good people.

 

[Lobary]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

"sensationalizing" is the perfect word for this. it won't be pleasant, but people are freaking out like houston is gonna be leveled or something. things will be fine.

In my mind its less a matter of actual damage (although it IS a hurricane and could certainly cause some good damage), it's more about public resources and priorities.Simply put, mopping up after a storm and getting thousands of people back home from where they went is and should be a priority over a football game. Hosting a football game requires public safety resources (police, fire, emergency services) that will likely have higher priorities. It's not so much the storm as it is the logistics and wisdom of trying to host a football game for 70,000 fans and the 50,000 cars they will drive to the game while also taking care of storm-related fallout.Remember - the last hurricane that caused a major evacuation out there resulted in 119 people dying - 9 from the storm and 110 from the evacuation - logistics is everything.

Yeah, those deaths occurred because everyone in Houston freaked the freak out and went hysterical trying to get out of the city. That's exactly why they've told the majority of Houstonians to stay put. You really think Houston is empty? There are millions of people right there, chilling out in their homes, waiting for Ike to hit. The people who will be returning home are the people who live in flood plains.

 

[Tree Fiddy]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

"sensationalizing" is the perfect word for this. it won't be pleasant, but people are freaking out like houston is gonna be leveled or something. things will be fine.

In my mind its less a matter of actual damage (although it IS a hurricane and could certainly cause some good damage), it's more about public resources and priorities.Simply put, mopping up after a storm and getting thousands of people back home from where they went is and should be a priority over a football game. Hosting a football game requires public safety resources (police, fire, emergency services) that will likely have higher priorities. It's not so much the storm as it is the logistics and wisdom of trying to host a football game for 70,000 fans and the 50,000 cars they will drive to the game while also taking care of storm-related fallout.Remember - the last hurricane that caused a major evacuation out there resulted in 119 people dying - 9 from the storm and 110 from the evacuation - logistics is everything.

Yeah, those deaths occurred because everyone in Houston freaked the freak out and went hysterical trying to get out of the city. That's exactly why they've told the majority of Houstonians to stay put. You really think Houston is empty? There are millions of people right there, chilling out in their homes, waiting for Ike to hit. The people who will be returning home are the people who live in flood plains.

Exactly my point - 200K people evacuated and they are going to come back. In light of how poorly managing this has gone in the past, don't you think the #1 public safety priority would be getting people back safely and orderly? It would certainly be hard to divert resources to directing traffic and doing security for a football game.

 

[Tom Servo]

I lived through Alicia, I'm well aware of what hurricane winds will do to the power supply. We were without power for less than twelve hours at my house, and that was twenty five years ago when no electrical lines were underground. You seem to be ignoring the timeline: the storm will have passed by tomorrow afternoon, allowing the electrical crews enough time to restore power to the area around Reliant Stadium.

The game will be played as scheduled.

I sat in on a conference call yesterday at work. Centerpoint Energy is looking for 11,000 utility workers; they're not going to get it. They already figure they have over 2 million customers out. This outage (for electric utilities, that goes until EVERYONE is back on) will go on for at least two weeks. Bottom line, I wouldn't be suprised if this came doesn't come off.

ETA: Houston's channel 2 via Click2houston.com reports Entergy reports 96% of their customers are off. From their description, it sounds like they lost a couple of substations; that's serious in that if the substation transformer is damaged, then it'll be several days before they could get a portable one in there and weeks before a new one arrives.

 

[Lobary]

I lived through Alicia, I'm well aware of what hurricane winds will do to the power supply. We were without power for less than twelve hours at my house, and that was twenty five years ago when no electrical lines were underground. You seem to be ignoring the timeline: the storm will have passed by tomorrow afternoon, allowing the electrical crews enough time to restore power to the area around Reliant Stadium.

The game will be played as scheduled.

I sat in on a conference call yesterday at work. Centerpoint Energy is looking for 11,000 utility workers; they're not going to get it. They already figure they have over 2 million customers out. This outage (for electric utilities, that goes until EVERYONE is back on) will go on for at least two weeks. Bottom line, I wouldn't be suprised if this came doesn't come off.

As far as the game goes, the power issue is not the problem because Downtown and the Med Center have power. The concern is floodwaters spilling out of the bayous and not draining quickly enough back towards Galveston Bay.

 

[Lobary]

Buddy of mine said he's hearing "rumblings" that getting this game played even on Monday is in jeopardy.

Anyone heard likewise?

I haven't heard anything, but my gut tells me there's a good chance Houston won't be in any sort of shape to host an NFL game on Monday.Right now Galveston and Houston look like they are in the direct line of the storm - category 3. Thousands have evacuated the area. In a bad scenario the area takes lots of damage - floods, power outtages, etc. In a best scenario they escape with only minor issues but thousands of peple will be trying to get back home on Monday. In either scenario, I have a hard time seeing how Houston is going to be able to pony up the public safety resources (police, etc.) needed to handle a large football crowd and the traffic that goes with it - they'll probably have more important things to worry about. Tack on that the last thing they'll need is huge crowd and more traffic and I think you can see that even Monday could be iffy.

Frankly I'm stunned they didn't take a more conservative approach and move the game elsewhere. I've already made contingency plans in my league in case the game doesn't happen this week.

Houston is fifty feet above sea level and sixty miles inland. The networks are sensationalizing the threat to the city. There will be high winds and isolated flooding, but Ike will pass through Houston overnight and through tomorrow. There will be damage but the city will be functional by Monday. Houston isn't New Orleans.

"sensationalizing" is the perfect word for this. it won't be pleasant, but people are freaking out like houston is gonna be leveled or something. things will be fine.

In my mind its less a matter of actual damage (although it IS a hurricane and could certainly cause some good damage), it's more about public resources and priorities.Simply put, mopping up after a storm and getting thousands of people back home from where they went is and should be a priority over a football game. Hosting a football game requires public safety resources (police, fire, emergency services) that will likely have higher priorities. It's not so much the storm as it is the logistics and wisdom of trying to host a football game for 70,000 fans and the 50,000 cars they will drive to the game while also taking care of storm-related fallout.

Remember - the last hurricane that caused a major evacuation out there resulted in 119 people dying - 9 from the storm and 110 from the evacuation - logistics is everything.

Yeah, those deaths occurred because everyone in Houston freaked the freak out and went hysterical trying to get out of the city. That's exactly why they've told the majority of Houstonians to stay put. You really think Houston is empty? There are millions of people right there, chilling out in their homes, waiting for Ike to hit. The people who will be returning home are the people who live in flood plains.

Exactly my point - 200K people evacuated and they are going to come back. In light of how poorly managing this has gone in the past, don't you think the #1 public safety priority would be getting people back safely and orderly? It would certainly be hard to divert resources to directing traffic and doing security for a football game.

I think you missed my point--those deaths during Rita occurred because almost the entire city of Houston fled at the same time. The evacuation for Ike was orderly and effective because emergency management officials identified the low lying areas at risk and issued evacuation orders by zip code. There were no problems leaving, so there's little reason to think there will be any problems for those evacuees returning.