When the 2018 NFL postseason begins later this week, it will be difficult, if not impossible for any team to replicate the sheer drama of the Philly Special.
But if one of the 12 remaining teams somehow delivers a sequence as mesmerizing as Trey Burton's toss to Nick Foles, there is a good chance Intel will capture it with their innovative True View system. Moments after Foles' gave the Eagles a 22-12 lead over the Patriots in Super Bowl LII, NBC utilized Intel's immersive technology when breaking down the fake reverse. At the same time, the technology powered by Intel provided fans with a 360 degree view of the trick play from Burton's helmet when the replay appeared on a Jumbotron at U.S. Bank Stadium.
For Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta, Intel and the NFL are evaluating some new features and experiences that could potentially be available to fans inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, according to league sources. During the 2018 regular season, Intel installed the True View technology in the new Downtown Atlanta venue, along with Nissan Stadium in Nashville, bringing its total to 13 stadiums throughout the league.
"We're getting to a stage where we see it as truly game changing for the NFL," said Preston Phillips, managing director of global business development at Intel Sports.
While Intel's system currently appears at less than half of the stadiums across the league, the technology has captured the vast majority of the NFL's top plays over the last year. Patrick Mahomes' improbable, cross-field completion to Tyreek Hill versus the Ravens, Derrick Henry's 99-yard touchdown run against the Jaguars and Stefon Diggs' miraculous catch in the NFC Divisional Playoffs all took place at stadiums equipped with the system. In many respects, the technology can be informative when fans use it to diagnose Odell Beckham's route-running ability on a crossing pattern and entertaining when they view it to watch Saquon Barkley hurdle two defenders from several different angles.
Many of the aforementioned stadiums are equipped with more than three dozen high definition cameras scattered throughout their respective venues. Following a play, a group of Intel-based servers can process up to 1 terabyte of data that effectively enables the company to stitch together a 3-D environment using voxels or pixels with volume. The voxels have the ability to measure a player's height, depth, width and weight -- common mechanisms that comprise a 3-D image -- in order to allow Intel to essentially interject a virtual camera anywhere on a field.
"Our system is like a bumble bee flying around the field," Phillips said.
When Intel first installed the technology inside NFL stadiums, the company dealt with numerous challenges in storing and tracking an inordinate amount of data. Intel also faced latency issues related to the lag time that it could deliver a highlight immediately after a play. As a result, the limitations constrained stadiums from showing highlights in True View of beyond 30 seconds. Now, at places such as Mercedes-Benz Stadium the technology has evolved to the point where Intel can essentially record an entire game, Phillips added.
Eventually, Intel intends to offer the immersive content as a real-time solution. Intel, an official technology partner with the NFL, appears to be making strides in the right direction. At present, the company has 200 engineers working each day to make the content available in real-time, Phillips said.
From a digital standpoint, Intel has already succeeded in using the technology to drive fan engagement. Moving forward, though, there are still questions on how True View can be utilized by all 32 franchises, along with the league itself. On the club level, there are use cases for the technology in scouting, film study and practice or training situations, said Will Deng, vice president of media strategy and business development at the NFL. The league may also be able to leverage the technology to help enhance its understanding of player injuries and as a training tool for officials, he noted.
In terms of real-time solutions for True View, a multitude of other factors might come into play. What is the likelihood that Intel could partner with other tech giants such as Microsoft and Verizon to accomplish its goals? Moreover, how dependent is Intel on 5-G or other compression technologies for making its vision realized?
The timetable on the potential real-time enhancements has yet to be established.
"It is something that is obviously a goal of ours and is obviously a goal of our partners that see the benefit of the opportunity of being able to work with us," Phillips said.
