Ep 1. Pilot

"Necessary Roughness" follows the story of Dr. Dani Santino, a Long Island divorcee who becomes a therapist for a professional football team. In the pilot episode, we meet Dani, a successful marriage therapist who begins to have problems in her personal life. Her husband leaves her for a younger woman, and she finds out that he has been cheating on her for years. This revelation leads Dani to start questioning her skills as a therapist, which is when she meets Nico, a recruiter for the New York Hawks football team.

Nico offers Dani a job as a therapist for the Hawks, citing a need for someone who can relate to the male players on the team. Dani is hesitant at first, but ultimately decides to take the job. She is immediately thrown into the team's world when she meets Matt, the starting quarterback who is struggling with his performance on the field. Dani quickly realizes that Matt's problems are not solely related to his game, but also stem from his difficult relationship with his coach.

As Dani begins to work with Matt, she also meets T.K., a wide receiver who is just as talented as he is reckless. T.K. is dealing with injury concerns and a growing addiction to painkillers, which puts him at odds with the team's head trainer, Ray. Dani is able to connect with T.K. and helps him confront his addiction, but not before he makes a public spectacle of himself during a game.

While Dani is busy making her rounds with the team, she is hit with another personal setback when her teenage son, Ray Jr., gets into trouble at school. The pressure of her new job and her family issues begin to take their toll on Dani, and she's forced to seek help from her own therapist, who advises her to focus on herself and her own issues before trying to help others.

Ultimately, Dani is able to help Matt work through his issues with his coach and T.K. confronts his addiction head-on. These successes are a major win for Dani and the team, but they also serve as proof that she has what it takes to make it in the high-stakes world of professional sports therapy. As the episode ends, we see Dani forge new relationships with the players and coaches, while also dealing with her ongoing personal struggles.