Schedule Release Day

Now we officially know which NFL games will be cancelled when/if the lockout drags on into the start of the season.  I find it incredibly interesting how the NFL had its annual schedule release show and the analysts on ESPN acted like there's no question all 256 games will be played, even though that seems extremely unlikely right now.  Anyway, the schedule is out.  We knew as soon as the season ended who would be playing who and where, but now then when has been added to the equation.  "If" is still up in the air, but for the sake of argument, we'll act like the analysts and assume every game is going to get played and there won't be any interruptions in the season.

Week 1: As always, the defending Super Bowl champ starts the season with a home game on Thursday night.  This year, we get the last two Super Bowl champions, as the Packers host the Saints.  The Colts visit the Texans, who beat them in Week 1 last year.  Falcons at Bears, the top two seeds in last year's NFC playoffs, and Steelers at Ravens, the best rivalry in the AFC.  The Giants visit the Redskins, an appropriate matchup on the 10th anniversary of 9/11.  The Cowboys visit the Jets on Sunday night, and the now annual Monday night doubleheader is Patriots-Dolphins and Raiders-Broncos (I predict no one will watch this game).

Week 2: The best game of Week 2 is Michael Vick vs. the Falcons on Sunday night.  The Monday night game is Giants-Rams, although I'm not exactly sure why that's the Monday night game.  The best afternoon games are probably Bears at Saints and Chargers at Patriots, which I'm guessing will be the doubleheader game.

Week 3: Week 3's got some good ones.  Giants-Eagles, Chiefs-Chargers, Falcons-Bucs, Packers at Bears in the NFC Championship Game rematch.  The Sunday night game is a beauty: Steelers at Colts.  On Monday night, we've got one of the required six NFC East primetime games when the Redskins play the Cowboys in Dallas.

Week 4: The afternoon games aren't really that exciting.  The best matchup is probably Vikings at Chiefs, but there's also a showdown between NFC division winners Atlanta and Seattle.  Dolphins-Chargers is probably going to be the national late game and, come to think of it, 49ers-Eagles doesn't look that bad.  The night games make up for it.  Jets-Ravens on Sunday night, Colts-Bucs on Monday night (the last time they played, it was a Monday night in 2003, and the game was fantastic!).

Week 5: Byes finally start in Week 5, which seems kind of late.  CBS has a phenomenal doubleheader with Chiefs-Colts and Jets-Patriots.  Seahawks-Giants is probably the best FOX game.  Sunday night is a good one between the Packers and Falcons, and Ford Field hosts a Monday night game for the second time, and this time the Lions will actually be one of the teams playing in it (against the Bears).

Week 6: Nothing really exciting in the afternoon except for Cowboys-Patriots, which is good, since that'll give me the chance to watch the baseball playoffs without feeling like I'm missing something.  The night games are good division matchups: Vikings-Bears on Sunday, Dolphins-Jets on Monday.

Week 7: The London game is Bucs-Bears.  It's the second time the Bucs are playing in the London game.  Some people might wonder why, but I think the fact that the Bucs' owner also owns Manchester United might have something to do with it.  (If the lockout continues until August 1, they'll move this game to Tampa.)  Back Stateside, the Chargers play the Jets and there'll be a Favre-less Packers-Vikings game.  There's a Sunday night game going against the World Series for the second straight year, as the Colts play the Saints.  Monday night it's Ravens-Jaguars.

Week 8: The NFL continues its annual venture into foreign lands, as the Bills play their annual Toronto game against the Redskins.  (The couldn't have held it this early last year, but I don't think they would've had to worry about the Blue Jays playing in the World Series either way.)  Dolphins-Giants in a yummy interconference matchup and Patriots-Steelers in the doubleheader game.  Cowboys-Eagles on Sunday night and Chargers-Chiefs on Monday night.

Week 9: Halfway there!  The marquee matchup at the midway point is obviously Giants-Patriots in Foxboro.  But there's good games all around: Falcons-Colts, Packers-Chargers, Dolphins-Chiefs, Bucs-Saints.  Ravens-Steelers Round II is the Sunday night game, and the Bears play the Eagles on Monday night.

Week 10: Time for the Thursday night games to start.  (That would excite me more if I got the NFL Network at home.)  Anyway, the first Thursday night game is Raiders-Chargers.  Nothing exciting Sunday afternoon other than Saints-Falcons.  But they make up for it with Patriots-Jets on Sunday night and Vikings-Packers on Monday night.

Week 11: This Thursday night game I'll be able to watch, since the Jets play the Broncos.  And the Giants play the Sunday night game (at home against the Eagles), which means this is the rare week I'll actually get to watch both national games.  The late game is Chargers-Bears.  I have no idea what the early game on CBS will be, but the FOX options are Bucs-Packers and Cowboys-Redskins.  Monday night it's Chiefs-Patriots.

Week 12: No surprise on Thanksgiving.  The Lions play the Packers on Turkey Day a lot, and with Green Bay the defending Super Bowl champions, this one was a no-brainer.  The only choices for the Cowboys game were the Dolphins and Bills, which made that choice incredibly easy.  Thanksgiving night is Niners-Ravens.  They obviously save the good games for Thanksgiving and primetime in Week 12, but they did leave two good ones on Sunday afternoon.  Vikings-Falcons early and Patriots-Eagles late.  Sunday night is Steelers-Chiefs, although I have a feeling that one might get flexed out.  Giants-Saints in New Orleans is one of the better Monday night games of the season.

Week 13: Colts-Patriots is really late this year.  They saved it for Sunday night in Week 13.  Sunday afternoon's highlights are Chiefs-Bears, Jets-Redskins and a dandy between the Packers and Giants.  The Eagles and Seahawks get the week started in Seattle, while the Chargers and Jaguars finish it about as far away from Seattle as you can possibly get (Jacksonville).

Week 14: This is a Thursday night game I wish I could watch: Browns at Steelers.  Colts-Ravens and Chiefs-Jets are both listed as early games right now, but I have a feeling that will change.  FOX gives us Eagles-Dolphins, as well as Jay Cutler's return to Denver.  Your NFC East primetime matchup is Giants at Cowboys on Sunday night, and the Rams and Seahawks play on Monday night.

Week 15: There are two games on NFL Network in Week 15: Jaguars-Falcons on Thursday and Cowboys-Bucs on Saturday.  There's a good lineup on Sunday afternoon with Saints-Vikings, Seahawks-Bears in a playoff rematch, Redskins-Giants, Packers-Chiefs, Patriots-Broncos and Jets-Eagles.  Sunday night's also a good one: Ravens-Chargers.  And I really like that Monday night game between the Steelers and 49ers.

Week 16: Since Christmas is on a Sunday this year, they moved the slate of games that's usually on Sunday afternoon to Saturday.  In the spirit of giving, the NFL lets both the Giants and Jets stay home for Christmas (the Jets are the home team).  And they're evidently hoping that whole "good will towards man" thing is true, since they've got a bunch of games between teams that don't really like each other (Raiders-Cheifs, Dolphins-Patriots, Eagles-Cowboys).  I also highly doubt that there'll be much Christmas Cheer being spread between the Bears and Packers on Christmas night in Lambeau.  The Texans and Colts play on Thursday night in Indy and the Monday night finale is Falcons at Saints.

Week 17: Christmas on a Sunday means New Year's is also a Sunday.  All 65 bowl games move to Monday, as does, presumably, the Winter Classic.  There also aren't any Thursday, Saturday or Monday night games.  Just a Sunday night game, which the NFL will pick the week before, and 15 games on Sunday afternoon.  And for the second straight year, all 16 Week 17 games will be division matchups.  Presumably one of those will be for a division title and get Sunday night treatment, like Rams-Seahawks did last year.  The matchups are: AFC East-Bills at Patriots, Jets at Dolphins; AFC North-Ravens at Bengals, Steelers at Browns; AFC South-Colts at Jaguars, Titans at Texans; AFC West-Chiefs at Broncos, Chargers at Raiders; NFC East-Cowboys at Giants, Redskins at Eagles; NFC North-Bears at Vikings, Lions at Packers; NFC South-Bucs at Falcons, Panthers at Saints; NFC West-49ers at Rams, Seahawks at Cardinals.  There's really no way to predict what'll end up being the Sunday night game, but I'm going to make an early guess of Chargers-Raiders.

The Super Bowl's on NBC in Indianapolis.  It's scheduled for February 5, but the NFL has said that they'll move it back a week if the lockout continues.  No word on the 256 regular season games.  But at least we know when everybody's technically supposed to play.  If they play.