Flexible Schedule for NBC and NFL next year

[brncs_fan]

Flexible NFL could create better Sunday match-ups


NEW YORK -- The NFL has its plan for eliminating those not-ready-for-prime-time matchups that too often sneaked onto national television.

The league plans to hold off scheduling Sunday night games in seven of the final eight weeks -- just as playoff races start heating up -- to ensure the best games are played on NBC. The league has long wanted some kind of flexible scheduling, but could never implement one until now.

For Weeks 10-15 and Week 17, the final regular-season weekend, all Sunday games will be listed with start times of 1 p.m. or 4:05-4:15 p.m. EST.

The league must then announce which match will be played Sunday night at least 12 days before the date of the game.

The lone exception is the season finale on Dec. 31, when the switch must be made no later than six days before the game.

Only Sunday games are subject to the flexible schedule that is part of the NFL's $3.6 billion contract with NBC for the Sunday night package.

CBS, which does the AFC games, and Fox, which does the NFC, each has the option to protect five games in the seven weeks of flexible scheduling, but neither can protect more than one game per week. So if Indianapolis is playing Pittsburgh in a late-season game and CBS does not want it moved to Sunday night on NBC, it has an option to keep the game.

Week 16 is Christmas weekend, and no game will be switched.

Teams will be told by the NFL office as soon as they are not under consideration to have a game moved. And, unlike in the past, teams are allowed to play in consecutive Sunday night games.

To make the system more flexible, up to three teams each season will be allowed a bonus sixth prime-time appearance. All the others will be limited to a maximum of five, including the Monday night ESPN package and the late-season Saturday or Thursday games on NFL Network.

The NFL often has moved games from early afternoon to late afternoon on Sundays to get a top matchup in a better viewing slot. It did so eight times in 2005. That flexibility remains.

In recent seasons, the league has faced lower prime-time ratings because of poor late-season matchups. It also has seen surprisingly successful teams shut out of prime time because the entire schedule is released in April.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2397614

[Mediator12]

You know, that actually makes sense. I am surprised the NFL was able to implement it

Except for the veto power I think that is a great system. Who cares what time the game is played as long as it is played on the same day? The fans want to see the best game in that time slot and are footing the bill with Viewership so I am glad this might actually put some interesting games in Prime time late next year.

[brncs_fan]

I think it is an interesting concept, whether it becomes a useful practice or not remains to be seen.

The setup favors all three networks though. If you are FOX or CBS, you may loose some games. But now you have a shot at the big games late in the season that they may have originally put in primetime. So CBS could air a Pitt at Indy game in November that last year would have went straight to Sunday night.

[Orange_Beard]

I have been b****ing about this for years. It is about time we get to see the best games at prime time.

[Hogan11]

Not being a Sunday Ticket holder and living on the east coast, I just know I'm going to get screwed out of a Broncos game by this at some point.....I don't care if PIT/INDY is the best matchup that weekend, if DEN is scheduled to play, say GB...I'd much rather see the team I root for then the other game even though it has a better overall selling point. Those once or twice guarenteed shots at seeing the Broncos on SNF/MNF for me are now gone.....add into the mix this NFL Network Thanksgiving game crap and I further lose out.

I'm not liking this new TV package one iota.

[BroncoMatt]

I see this as a bad thing, look at NBC's coverage of the NBA. The so-called marquee teams will get all teh coverage while regional games get brushed aside.

[Dagmar]

Originally Posted by BroncoMatt

I see this as a bad thing, look at NBC's coverage of the NBA. The so-called marquee teams will get all teh coverage while regional games get brushed aside.

I hope that doesn't happen. I hope it's a good thing, I was sick of the last few MNF's last season, Green Bay Vs Saints or whatever... Hopefully they'll show better games.

[brncs_fan]

Originally Posted by Hogan11

Not being a Sunday Ticket holder and living on the east coast, I just know I'm going to get screwed out of a Broncos game by this at some point.....I don't care if PIT/INDY is the best matchup that weekend, if DEN is scheduled to play, say GB...I'd much rather see the team I root for then the other game even though it has a better overall selling point. Those once or twice guarenteed shots at seeing the Broncos on SNF/MNF for me are now gone.....add into the mix this NFL Network Thanksgiving game crap and I further lose out.

I'm not liking this new TV package one iota.

Their thinking is that the fan base (the people that live in the city/region of their favorite team) are going to get to see their team play the majority of the time. This is more to enitce people into watching more football instead of seeing the NO vs GB on the schedule and doing something else for the night.

The good thing for the Broncos is that they typically play in the 3:00 cmt so there is less competition for air time and should be affected by this the least except for maybe getting bumped up to the night game when you wouldn't even have seen them play at all if you live out of the region.

[Hogan11]

Originally Posted by brncs_fan

The good thing for the Broncos is that they typically play in the 3:00 cmt so there is less competition for air time and should be affected by this the least except for maybe getting bumped up to the night game when you wouldn't even have seen them play at all if you live out of the region.

While certainly possible, it also works both ways. Under the current agreement, no way would that Denver @ Buffalo game been seen last season nationally on Sunday Night. That might be cause for celebration for other fans in the league who'd rather have seen...say TB vs. NYG (just making the game up here) , but where does that leave those of us Broncos fans who are not in the Denver area, unable to pay through the nose for Sunday Ticket and are constantly being jypped by regional coverage?

You can bet if they move Denver from one of those night games, there's going to be a lot of screaming about it from out of state fans....myself included.

[CBF1]

Has anyone else heard that the 2006 schedule will be released this week? It was a topic on the local radio saying it will be this week.

[Crushaholic]

Originally Posted by CBF1

Has anyone else heard that the 2006 schedule will be released this week? It was a topic on the local radio saying it will be this week.

Today (Thursday)

[Kaylore]

Originally Posted by BroncoMatt

I see this as a bad thing, look at NBC's coverage of the NBA. The so-called marquee teams will get all teh coverage while regional games get brushed aside.

If that were true, then they would be doing that already when they pick the schedule at the beginning. How many interceptions were we forced to watch Brett Favre throw last year again?

They know teams would rather watch a game that has some importance and features two teams evenly matched than what looked like a good matchup at the start and then after one team is plagued by injuries, turned into a 2-8 team being routed by a 9-1 team.

This is a good thing. A warning, though: There will be some people pissed when their primetime game gets canceled either because they suck or the team they were scheduled to play sucks.