Former Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney is seen before the game against the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium on Nov. 10, 2019, in Indianapolis.
LAS VEGAS (WISH) — Super Bowl week is always jam-packed with events in whichever city the game is taking place.
This week in Las Vegas, it’s no different.
Fans are everywhere and events are taking place all over Las Vegas.
One of those events was held on Saturday morning, the annual NFL-sanctioned Athletes in Action Super Bowl Breakfast. The breakfast has taken place in the Super Bowl host city every year since 1988.
This year’s breakfast was held inside Caesars Palace.
News 8 Sports director Anthony Calhoun has been in Las Vegas all week long, and on Saturday, he attended the breakfast and caught up with former Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy, who was taking part in the event.
During their conversation, Dungy shared his thoughts on what it was like to coach former Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney, who was recently named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024.
“We’re going to need people to close out the games and rush the passer and make those big plays and that’s why we decided on Dwight,” Dungy said. “And over the course of his career, he did that, and I can’t even remember how many games he closed out for us with that big play in the fourth quarter and that was special. So, to see him come from that draft choice, to a Super Bowl champion, to a Hall of Famer, it’s really incredible.”
Dungy actually knew before Freeney that the former NFL star was going to become a member of the Hall of Fame. In fact, Dungy was the one who broke the news to Freeney.
“When I met him at a golf course, he had no idea what was happening,” Dungy said. “He thought he was going to play golf with Michael Jordan (one of Freeney’s friends) that morning, and to see the look on his face, and to realize that, you know, this is kind of the climactic moment o,f his career, and it was really, really special.”l
