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McDonald's recruits Kaepernick, Flacco to push new wings

September 16, 2013

McDonald's Mighty Wings are now available at restaurants through mid-November and while supplies last. The spicy, bone-in, crispy wings are available in 3-, 5- and 10-piece varieties. There are also nine sauces to choose from.

To promote the new item, McDonald's has turned to NFL quarterbacks Joe Flacco (Baltimore Ravens) and Colin Kaepernick (San Francisco 49ers), who squared off against each other in last year's Super Bowl Championship. In the website ad, McDonald's Mighty Wings go missing and the quarterbacks accuse each other of hiding them.

McDonald's website includes interviews with each "suspect," clues and a list of other suspects such as "The Reporter" and "The Mascot."

The web ad is preceded by the TV ad in which the two QBs compete for possession of the wings. USA Today called the ad a nod to the "beloved Michael Jordan vs. Larry Bird nothing-but-net" ad from the early '90s.

McDonald's is an Official Sponsor of the NFL.

"Chicken wings are one of the most commonly ordered items at sit-down restaurants while watching sports," said Steve Ramirez, a Sacramento-area McDonald's owner and operator. "By adding Mighty Wings to our menu this fall, we want to bring the popularity and fun of chicken wings to customers looking for any reason to order them — be it during game day or while on-the-go."

The Mighty Wings were tested for about a year in the Chicago and Atlanta markets. According to the company, the item was inspired by a similar product in McDonald's Hong Kong system.

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