Behind the Scenes with FOX’s NFL crew: A Thanksgiving tribute to John Madden

By Richie Zyontz
FOX NFL Lead Producer

Editor’s Note: Richie Zyontz has been an NFL producer for FOX since 1994 and is in his 23rd season as the lead producer. He has more than 40 years of experience covering the league and has produced seven Super Bowls. Throughout the 2024 NFL season, he is providing an inside look as FOX’s new No. 1 NFL team, including NFL legend Tom Brady, makes its journey toward Super Bowl LIX. Read more behind-the-scenes stories from Richie Zyontz here.

The NFL now dedicates Thanksgiving to the memory of John Madden, and rightly so.

After all, Thanksgiving was the day he loved most of all, and who better represented the league as a Super Bowl-winning coach, legendary broadcaster and energetic ambassador than Madden?

All three games on Thursday, including our broadcast of the New York Giants at the Dallas Cowboys (4:30 p.m. ET on FOX), will have field signage, commemorative coins, trophies and video vignettes celebrating Madden’s career. It will be a beautiful and touching day of tribute.

But to those of us who knew him and loved him — and that’s a very large group spanning every network at every level — every day is John Madden Day. And while many others could write this tribute, I feel uniquely qualified to do so as a pal of his for 40 years.

An awkward start to a long-lasting friendship

My first encounter with John didn’t go so well.

My entry level job at CBS involved making sure those up the food chain had all the necessary creature comforts on a given weekend. At a preseason game in San Diego in 1982, things went horribly wrong. Unbeknownst to me, Madden had been assigned a hotel room on the 19th floor with two twin beds. Now, we all know that even a king-sized bed was likely a pretty snug fit for him, and his fear of heights and claustrophobia would not be assuaged with a penthouse room.

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So Madden summoned me down to meet him for breakfast — or so I thought. There, buried behind a newspaper with an unlit cigar jutting from his jowly mouth, was the great man himself. As I was about to settle in for a couple of eggs and bacon, he dropped the newspaper, looked at me and said, “low floor, big bed.” 

That was it.

Up went the newspaper and out went my breakfast. The conversation was done. And that was the start of a beautiful friendship.

The author’s friendship with John Madden didn’t have the smoothest beginning. (Photo courtesy of Richie Zyontz)

A big laugh, and a heart to match

My comeback from that moment started shortly thereafter when the Maddens bought an apartment in the Dakota, an elegant old building on Manhattan’s west side near Central Park. As a native New Yorker, I became one of his guides to local customs and delicacies. We helped indoctrinate the newcomer into the world of Kosher delis, egg creams, pizza bought by the slice, and the art of jaywalking.

Strolling along Columbus Avenue with John often led to surprise encounters. A long conversation on a park bench with a homeless person one day, and a chat about the New York Giants with Richard Nixon the next. Madden had time for everyone. And boy could he laugh!

The sound of Madden’s bellowing laugh could strip paint off a wall and scare away every pigeon and squirrel within earshot. Making him laugh was truly one of life’s pleasures — just never try to con him. He had world-class antennae for rooting out pretense and self-importance. That was all part of the DNA that made him so unique.

One skill you would never associate with Madden is matchmaking — yet he was the one who introduced me to my wife, June. He and his wife Virginia offered up their house for the wedding, and John served as my best man. That’s a natural hat trick of extraordinary circumstances that is almost beyond comprehension! Not to mention, he had a game room with pinball machines that served quite well to ease my pre-ceremony nerves.

John Madden offered up his home in Danville, California for the author’s wedding, where some pre-ceremony pinball helped calm nerves. (Photo courtesy of Richie Zyontz)

Toward the end of his life, I visited John near his home in Pleasanton, California. By this time, he had lost his hearing and required a walker to get around.

For the 40 years of our friendship, he seemed indestructible. He was always healthy and hearty, so it was difficult to see him struggling. But while his body was weakening, his mind was still as sharp as ever.

As I helped him to his truck and wandered back to my car, his voice blasted out across the parking lot.

“Richie, c’mere!”

I sprinted the 50 yards back toward him, horrified that perhaps something was wrong.

“Thanks for coming,” he said, expressing his thoughts simply, as always.

That was the last time I saw him.

John Madden touched many lives during his long career, including this FOX sports crew. From left: producer Bob Stenner, analyst Troy Aikman, John Madden, producer Richie Zyontz, director Rich Russo. (Photo courtesy of Richie Zyontz)

A legendary coach, broadcaster and friend

On Thursday, when everyone settles in to watch football, our television screens will light up with tributes to a legend. We’ll all have the pleasure of looking back and remembering John Madden the coach, and John Madden the broadcaster.

But for me, and for so many others whose lives he touched, it will always be John Madden the friend who we will treasure the most.

Richie Zyontz has been an NFL producer for FOX since 1994 and is in his 23rd season as lead producer. He boasts more than 40 years of experience covering the NFL.