Dive Brief:
- The Seattle Seahawks chose Amazon Web Services (AWS) for its cloud computing, machine learning and artificial intelligence needs, according to a company announcement Monday.
- The National Football League (NFL) team will use the AWS cloud for driving "analysis of game footage to inform game strategy" operationally and strategically, according to AWS. The cloud will supplement the Seahawks' weekly NFL Next Gen Stats player tracking data to develop "custom analytics and proprietary statistics."
- The Seahawks will store a combination of NFL and player data in an Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) bucket. The Seahawks plan to tap the Amazon ML Solutions Lab to give coaches, scouts and referees a "bird's eye view of all 22 players on the field" in game video footage.
Dive Insight:
In sports, data is the G.O.A.T.
The NFL is positioning to be a tech leader. The league's CIO wanted to double-down on data analytics, AI and omnichannel capabilities ahead of its 100th season this year. The NFL inked a deal with AWS two years ago, partnering on the Next Gen Stats platform.
The platform uses RFID tags on players and equipment for comprehensible analytics. The analytics not only allow franchises to develop game time strategy, but also provides insights into injuries.
Amazon CEO and part-time Seattle resident Jeff Bezos is mulling over purchasing the Seattle franchise, according to The Washington Post. The Seahawks were owned by Microsoft Co-founder Paul Allen, who died in Oct. 2018.
As technology matures off the field, NFL players are adapting. As drones began covering fields, microphones were more likely to pick up audibles by quarterbacks.
Now-retired Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning recalled having to rework and rename plays when drones captured his calls complete with aerial views. However, he still remains "a big deal in Omaha, Nebraska," he said while speaking at the Gartner IT Symposium/Xpo last year, referring to his famous "Omaha" calls.
Not all of the NFL's technology adoption is favored by players and coaches.
The New England Patriots' head coach Bill Belichick declared he was "done" with the NFL's use of Microsoft's Surface tablets, saying he would rather rely on "pictures."
