Well, this is an awkward pairing.
CBS Sports confirms to ET that they are changing their plans for tonight's debut of Thursday Night Football.
An opening segment involving Jay Z's song "Run This Town" (featuring Rihanna) with narration by Don Cheadle was scheduled to kick off the game featuring the Baltimore Ravens playing the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, in light of recent events, that plan has been scrapped.
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CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus talked about the last minute change to SI.com saying that, "We thought journalistically and from a tone standpoint, we needed to have the appropriate tone and coverage. A lot of the production elements we wanted in the show are being eliminated because of time or tone."
The Ravens have been making headlines after player Ray Rice was fired from the team and then suspended from the NFL indefinitely after a video was released by TMZ of him knocking his wife, then fiancee, Janay Palmer Rice unconscious.
It was only 5 years ago that Chris Brown and Rihanna found themselves in the center of a media frenzy after a brutal domestic violence incident. Back in 2009, a photograph surfaced of Rihanna's face bruised and beaten following an altercation with her then boyfriend Brown the night before the Grammy Awards. She was on and off with the 25-year-old R&B singer for years following the altercation.
Given the obvious connection between the two high profile cases, the decision to pull the song makes total sense.
NEWS: Seth Rogen Slams Ray Rice and NFL
Brooklyn Nine-Nine star and former NFL pro Terry Crews gave ET his take on the Ray Rice scandal, and it's a must-watch:
CBS Football kicks off tonight at 6PM ET.