The NFL announces CBS will broadcast Thursday Night Football and two Saturday games

[wr50l]

If they're going to press on with this prime time spot then fine, but they have to make it so both teams are heading into TNF off of a bye week. Whether they can do that under the existing format or they need to add an additional bye week is up to them. But the current TNF product is poor - sloppy, tired execution, limited game planning - these are all the unavoidable result of the impossible Sunday to Thursday turnaround.

Another harsh truth here is that the NFL now needs to come up with an additional marquee game very week. Frankly, most weeks they struggle to come up with four worthwhile games to cover 1pm 4pm SNF and MNF. So if anyone thinks that it'll be good just because CBS aren't going to pay for rubbish games well ... they can't just conjure up some good contests, and any good TNF game is going to result in a stinker going on one of the main slots.

Lucky for the NFL, all of their fans gamble either on spreads or fantasy and can be drawn into watching rubbish games, even if they don't wish to admit that it's betting which is generating most of the league's popularity.

[Warner2BruceTD]

If they're going to press on with this prime time spot then fine, but they have to make it so both teams are heading into TNF off of a bye week. Whether they can do that under the existing format or they need to add an additional bye week is up to them. But the current TNF product is poor - sloppy, tired execution, limited game planning - these are all the unavoidable result of the impossible Sunday to Thursday turnaround.

Another harsh truth here is that the NFL now needs to come up with an additional marquee game very week. Frankly, most weeks they struggle to come up with four worthwhile games to cover 1pm 4pm SNF and MNF. So if anyone thinks that it'll be good just because CBS aren't going to pay for rubbish games well ... they can't just conjure up some good contests, and any good TNF game is going to result in a stinker going on one of the main slots.

Lucky for the NFL, all of their fans gamble either on spreads or fantasy and can be drawn into watching rubbish games, even if they don't wish to admit that it's betting which is generating most of the league's popularity.

Great post, and bingo on the bold.

The watering down of Sunday afternoon, which is the backbone of the league that they spent decades establishing as a part of American culture, continues.

[Warner2BruceTD]

I've got another W2B special for you guys.

When the fantasy football boom stops, dips, and levels off someplace lower than it is now (and this will happen, like most fads), resulting in decreased interest in Browns vs Bills and Cardinals vs Rams on a week by week basis, the NFL will lobby under the cloak of darkness for legalized gambling.

Legalized gambling has always been the NFL ace in the hole. Give Johnny Casual, Gladys from marketing at your office, and Uncle Bob who is addicted to lotto the ability to easily & legally bet on NFL games, and NFL popularity will blow past where it is currently.

They haven't played that card because they haven't had to. But if they keep slowly killing Sunday and counting on the fantasy bubble to carry them, it'll happen. And the NFL is the only entity powerful enough to finally get America gambling on sports legally.

Give it a decade.

[NAHSTE]

Great post, and bingo on the bold.

The watering down of Sunday afternoon, which is the backbone of the league that they spent decades establishing as a part of American culture, continues.

It really doesn't make much sense. That's your brand. It's the thing you own. Why give that up? Sunday afternoon is sacred, and you can't buy that kind of built in routine-based brand equity.

I know the NFL is coming from a much loftier perch, but this is kind of like how college football bowls owned January 1 for decades, then the ABC execs let it bleed too far into the first and second week of January and weakened their hold on the date. And now on New Years Day, some people watch hockey teams play in baseball stadiums on NBC instead.

[KINGOFOOTBALL]

What am I paying 300$ to DTV for again ?

[JimLeavy59]

What makes it worse is you got people like Maynard "people lovez footballz" or that clown Cowheard who I bet pulled out the Super Bowl numbers and said "see people love football we'll watch anything with football" to defend this kind of crap. What made the NFL special was that it was Sunday and Monday, and thats it just those days.

Now its Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Just fuck man let me breathe a little. Also can't wait for the NFL to either move to 18 games or add more teams to the playoffs.

[Aso]

With 14 playoff teams the NFL could expand playoff games to friday night as well.

[JimLeavy59]

With 14 playoff teams the NFL could expand playoff games to friday night as well.

Wouldn't be surprised.

We should also expect 4 Europe teams who will have a playoff to determine who gets the 14th spot in the expanded playoff.

[NAHSTE]

What am I paying 300$ to DTV for again ?

As someone who just paid his 6th installment for last season, this question kept me up a bit last night. What the fuck am I really getting out of it? I watch my team at 1 which prevents me from watching much else aside from commercial breaks (of which there are plenty, sure) ... then there are but two or three total games on at 4pm each week, almost all of them involving the Raiders or Cardinals.

[Maynard]

What makes it worse is you got people like Maynard "people lovez footballz" or that clown Cowheard who I bet pulled out the Super Bowl numbers and said "see people love football we'll watch anything with football" to defend this kind of crap. What made the NFL special was that it was Sunday and Monday, and thats it just those days.

Now its Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Just fuck man let me breathe a little. Also can't wait for the NFL to either move to 18 games or add more teams to the playoffs.

when did i say i like TNF you fuckhead? i said if we are forced to have it then we might as well have it on network tv instead of NFL network cause their broadcast sucks.

plus i am not retarded and dont have cable tv. so for me its all about being able to watch the game on tv instead of the internet....fucking moron

[NAHSTE]

when did i say i like TNF you fuckhead? i said if we are forced to have it then we might as well have it on network tv instead of NFL network cause their broadcast sucks.

Their production quality did suck, so it's good that CBS will produce all 16. However, I don't see how trading 8 games with Mayock/Nessler, one of the best crews out there, for more Nantz/Simms, one of the worst, is a good thing.

[Maynard]

its not any better. but for me it allows me to see the game a HD network broadcast rather than firstrowsports.

[NAHSTE]

its not any better. but for me it allows me to see the game a HD network broadcast rather than firstrowsports.

Wait, do you not have NFL Network or something? It wasn't that bad, just the camera work was shoddy.

[Youk]

its not any better. but for me it allows me to see the game a HD network broadcast rather than firstrowsports.

I think you forgot a word or four.

[KINGOFOOTBALL]

As someone who just paid is 6th installment for last season, this question kept me up a bit last night. What the fuck am I really getting out of it? I watch my team at 1 which prevents me from watching much else aside from commercial breaks (of which there are plenty, sure) ... then there are but two or three total games on at 4pm each week, almost all of them involving the Raiders or Cardinals.

This entirely. I pay the extra 69 or 99 whatever it is for the off chance Ill need to watch via internet. But I simply don't feel I'm getting my moneys worth.
Not because of DTV but because NFL has spread out too many games and features like Shortcuts are pretty useless to me because of the spread of days.