5 questions for... Sean McDonough
ESPN play-by-play man Sean McDonough talks about his first season of “Monday Night Football” and looks ahead toward the Cowboys-Lions game with The Post’s Justin Terranova Q: What separates Dak Prescott from other rookie quarterbacks?
A: He’s sitting back there behind that great offensive line with all day to throw, but he still has to put the throws in there. He’s very poised, one of those guys when he comes and sits down with you in the meeting room, you can see him leading a team very easily. He has what everyone calls the “it” factor: poise and self-confidence, but not cockiness. Q: Who is the biggest threat to the Cowboys in the NFC?
A: Seattle. They’ve been to the Super Bowl twice in the last three years. They still have a wonderful defense and are doing just enough on offense. It’s hard to go against the Giants, who are playing great defense one week after the next. It’s amazing how much smarter coaches get when you add $200 million in talent. ... Dallas has had a tremendous season, but I don’t think they are head and shoulders above everybody else.
Q: What has been your favorite ‘MNF’ moment this year?
A: The personal highlight was getting the chance to do a game in New England. I grew up here in Boston, going to almost every Patriots home game with my dad. There was so many nice touches around the game. When I got in the booth, there was a handwritten letter from Mike Reiss (ESPN reporter) that said he knew it was a special night and how proud my dad would be.
Q: How is it working next to Jon Gruden?
A: We’ve had a fun year and he is a very interesting guy to be around, as you could imagine. I think Jon and I got better as the year went on, and I am thankful it looks like he’s staying with us. I got nervous reading some of the stuff (about the Rams’ interest), but it was nice to hear him say he loves what he’s doing and intends to stay. Q: How do you handle a blowout — like the JetsColts game a few weeks back? A: Even though the game isn’t compelling play to play, I think in the case of the Jets what we tried to do that night is talk about the team’s issues. Why has this happened? What do they do about their quarterback situation? What is the future? They have some hard decisions to make. Was it a oneyear blip or do they have to blow it all up?