NBC Butchered Philadelphia’s Geography for Sunday Night Football

The Eagles’ 27-0 demolition of the New York Giants Sunday night wasn’t just the Eagles’ first blowout victory of the season. It was a blowout victory on national television. Football fans across the country were forced to see the Eagles’ impressive win, even if they hate the Birds! (Right, as if NFL fans would have turned off a game of football. Eh, maybe when it got later into the game.)

NBC’s studio set for the game was appropriately Philadelphia-themed. The only problem: NBC completely butchered Philadelphia’s geography. Yes, the backdrop is supposed to be a stylized version of Philadelphia. It’s still hilarious. Let’s count the ways:

1. Boathouse Row has been moved slightly down the river to sit beside to the Art Museum. I hope the rowers enjoy the new waterfall obstacle that’s been added to their races and practices!
2. A new, giant Rocky Statue has been cast and placed on the side of the Art Museum. The Rocky Statue is now the largest statue in Philadelphia. Philadelphia’s Christ the Redeemer is a fictional boxer. He did single-handedly win the Cold War, at least.
3. The Comcast Center — home of NBC’s parent company — is left untouched.
4. City Hall has been moved to a spot between Liberty One and the BNY Mellon Center. Based on its proximity to 1818 Market Street — where the Philadelphia magazine offices are located — I’m thinking this could be done by knocking down several Penn Center buildings and moving City Hall slightly to the north and west. City Hall also appears to be much taller — but the statue of William Penn still cowers in fear of the massive new Rocky one.
5. The LOVE sculpture has been enlarged and moved to the Schuylkill Banks. That’s not a bad place for it! We already have two of them — at JFK Plaza and on Penn’s campus — so why not a third?
6. And Lincoln Financial Field has been moved about five miles to the area just north of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. That’s much more convenient for Center City residents — we can walk there! Traffic might be an issue, though, and the stadium appears to be about the size of Campbell’s Field in Camden.

There you have it: Philadelphia’s geography, as re-imagined by NBC. Since Comcast owns the station and is the most powerful company in town, I expect the city to start working on these changes any day now.