There were a couple surprises when the NFL schedule was released last night. I was also curious how they would handle the new Thursday night schedule where CBS and NBC are sharing games with NFL Network. And they certainly got creative with that (the Giants-Rams London game on NFL Network, for example). One thing that didn't surprise me, though, was the Super Bowl rematch in Week 1. The NFL rarely gets that opportunity, and they would've been stupid not to take it.
Week 1: What did surprise me about Week 1 was no national game in New York on the 15th anniversary of 9/11. The Giants are playing the Cowboys, but it's in Dallas at 4:30. That's the one I figured would be the Sunday night game. Rams-49ers is also in the wrong city. The LA Rams' first game back on the West Coast should be against San Francisco. But that Monday night game should be the NFL's triumphant return to LA.
Week 2: Thursday Night Football returns with Jets-Bills, and so does the Color Rush. Why they're trying that again, I have no idea. I thought the Vikings' first game at their new stadium would be the first part of the Week 1 Monday night doubleheader, but I'm OK with them waiting until Week 2 and a Sunday night matchup with the Packers for the opening. Meanwhile, the Rams' first home game is against Seattle, a team they owned during their final seasons in St. Louis. Broncos-Colts is less relevant now that it's not Manning vs. Luck.
Week 3: For some reason, Bears-Cowboys and Falcons-Saints are the two primetime games. I'm not sure why. All four teams sucked last year, and this is before you can flex out Sunday night games. It's also curious timing for that Patriots-Texans Thursday night game. If Brady's suspension is reissued, he won't be playing in that one. I like the idea of that one on a Thursday night, I'm just worried it's too early in the season.
Week 4: Our first London game is Colts-Jaguars. There's once again talk of Jacksonville moving to London permanently...and I can't begin to list the reasons why that's a bad idea. Anyway, back on this side of the Pond, we've got the Seahawks making the cross-country trek to visit the Jets for their first game at MetLife Stadium since their Super Bowl win. The Jets can be on FOX since the Giants are in Minnesota on Monday night. The Sunday night game should be a good one between the Chiefs and Steelers. Oddly, CBS takes a week off from Thursday night, as Dolphins-Bengals is only on NFL Network.
Week 5: Week 5 has some good matchups. Cardinals-49ers on Thursday night, Giants-Packers on Sunday night, Jets-Steelers, Bengals-Cowboys. And a Bucs-Panthers Monday night game. Carolina went 15-1 last season, yet didn't have a single primetime game all year. They'll get two in the first five weeks this season. FOX only has four games on the initial schedule, so I'm sensing some of the NFL's new favorite thing, cross-flexing.
Week 6: They're not making a big deal about it like they did last season, but we've got a Giants-Ravens Super Bowl rematch in Week 6. Denver plays on Thursday night for the second time when they visit San Diego, while the Colts and Texans play in a Sunday night game that should be much later in the year just in case. And I don't know why they have the Jets flying cross country for a Monday night game in Arizona. The best game of the week is Cowboys-Packers.
Week 7: CBS wraps up its Thursday night slate with Bears-Packers, while the Giants-Rams game will be the first-ever NFL game at Twickenham Stadium in London. They agreed to play in London when they were still based in St. Louis, but that eight-hour time difference from London to LA is going to be crazy tough on the Rams' bodies (and I'm sure their fans aren't thrilled about the 6:30 am start time either). Patriots-Steelers is the national late game (which is exclusive), Seahawks-Cardinals on Sunday Night Football, and Texans-Broncos in the Monday night game for Brock Osweiler's return to Denver.
Week 8: Jacksonville at Tennessee in the first Thursday night game of the NFL Network-only portion. That's become a staple of Thursday Night Football. Division games in the other two primetime slots: Eagles-Cowboys and Vikings-Bears. Smart to put Dallas opposite Game 5 of the World Series. It's also surprising. They usually have a super-marquee game in that slot (last year it was Packers-Broncos, for example). It might be a lot easier for fans to choose this year, as FOX will try that whole-day thing once again, as they start with their London game between the Redskins and Bengals.
Week 9: The thing that immediately jumped out at me about Week 9 was the Sunday night game in Oakland. It's been a long time since the Raiders even played on Sunday night, let alone had a Sunday night home game. Of course, it can be flexed out. But I don't think it will be. Although, we do have Eagles-Giants and Steelers-Ravens. Colts-Packers will probably be protected by CBS as its national late game.
Week 10: Seattle at New England. All I have to say. The first meeting between the two since Super Bowl XLIX. Cowboys-Steelers should also be fun. The Giants and Jets both have home interconference games for the first time in quite a while, and I don't remember the last time the Giants played a home Monday night game. The current Browns vs. the old Browns on Thursday night means we'll get our fill of the AFC North in Week 10.
Week 11: NBC takes over the Thursday night simulcasting with Saints-Panthers. They also have a Packers-Redskins playoff rematch on Sunday night. But the game of the week is the Monday nighter between the Raiders and Texans, the first NFL game in Mexico City since 2005. Cross-flexing alert! Eagles-Seahawks is on CBS and Bills-Bengals is on FOX. I still have no idea why they do this.
Week 12: With the selection of AFC teams visiting Detroit very limited (Jacksonville and Tennessee were the choices), it seemed inevitable the Lions would play a conference team on Thanksgiving. They've actually got a division game against the Vikings, making this the third straight year the two day games on Thanksgiving are all-NFC affairs. The AFC is allowed to play on Thanksgiving this year, though. Steelers-Colts is the night game. Meanwhile, Chiefs-Broncos is the Sunday late game, Patriots-Jets is the Sunday night game, and Packers-Eagles is the Monday night game. As usual, a good slate on Thanksgiving weekend.
Week 13: As December starts, the quality games get ratcheted up. Cowboys-Vikings on Thursday night, Giants-Steelers in the national late game, and Panthers-Seahawks on Sunday night. I'm a little worried about the Colts-Jets Monday night matchup, though. I can easily see both of those teams being out of it by this point just as much as I can see them contending for division titles.
Week 14: Well, I finally get my Cowboys at Giants Sunday night game. It's just much later in the season than I originally thought. NBC's other game on Thursday night is the Raiders again, Oakland's third primetime game of the season. This time, they're in Kansas City. The Seahawks play the Packers in the FOX late game and the Ravens play the Patriots on Monday night.
Week 15: Since they had to figure out a way to have eight games on NFL Network that aren't simulcast on either CBS or NBC, they had to double-up some weeks. Week 15 is one of those, as we've got a Rams-Seahawks simulcast on Thursday and a Dolphins-Jets Saturday night game. Amazingly, Patriots-Broncos is not in primetime (at least, not right now). Brady vs. Sanchez I is at 4;30. Pittsburgh at Cincinnati is the Sunday night game instead, while Carolina-Washington is on Monday night.
Week 16: Some usual Week 16 games, and some things that are different. Broncos-Bengals ISN'T the final Monday night game for the first time in three years. It's Lions-Cowboys instead. We do have the traditional Week 16 Jets-Patriots game, though. Giants-Eagles is the final Thursday night game, as it's mostly division matchups. Since Christmas is a Sunday, most of the games are on Christmas Eve, as is usually the case when that happens. Except there's still a Sunday night game on Christmas between the Broncos and Chiefs. What surprised me, though, was that second Christmas afternoon game. The Ravens are playing the Steelers, and apparently, they both volunteered to play on Christmas as long as they could play each other (Pittsburgh even wanted to host). I guess they just wanted to see their old friends on Christmas that badly. Shrewd move to go directly against the marquee basketball game on what's traditionally been the NBA's holiday.
Week 17: Who needs bowls when you can have the final week of the NFL season on New Year's Day? My early candidates for the game getting flexed into primetime are Ravens-Bengals, Cowboys-Eagles and Raiders-Broncos, with Bills-Jets and Giants-Redskins both holding an outside chance. Although, no one would've figured Vikings-Packers would end up being the 256th game of last season, so it could just as easily be Jacksonville at Indianapolis for all I know.
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