Tag: 2020 NFL schedule

Report: Vikings to play Saints on Christmas Day

Vikings fans are reportedly getting an extra present for the holidays this year: Their team playing the Saints.

Minnesota playing New Orleans in the 2020 regular season game has quite a lot of implications.

The two teams last met when the Vikings beat the Saints in overtime fashion in a playoff game. There’s also the Minneapolis Miracle, which you’ve always got to mention if you cover the Vikings and you’re talking about the Saints.

Now, there is an added bonus: the two teams will play on Christmas day, according to Jeff Duncan of the Athletic. The Saints will be looking for revenge against a Vikings team that hopefully didn’t take too many steps back.

Drew Brees is 41 years old, but he’s still Drew Brees and the Saints still have a high-powered offense. Will Kirk Cousins, Dalvin Cook and Adam Thielen thrive under new offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak? Only time will tell.

The Saints playing the Vikings was listed under one of the possible games that could be prime time this season when Vikings Wire was making its predictions. See the other possible prime time games here.

Matthew McConaughey, Urban Meyer set to headline Redskins schedule release party

The Redskins have quite a star-studded lineup for their Schedule Release party set to take place on Thursday night.

The Washington Redskins are doing everything they can to keep us entertained, and Thursday night’s virtual Schedule Release Party will likely do the trick. Just a half-hour before the NFL releases the 2020 schedule for all 32 teams in the league, each team will be able to let their fans know of the upcoming slate via social media. The Redskins are choosing to do so in style.

According to Redskins.com, this is what they have planned:

During the first hour of the show beginning at 7 p.m. ET, Academy Award winning actor Matthew McConaughey, acclaimed director Peter Berg, The Punisher star Jon Bernthal, CNBC’s Halftime Report host Scott Wapner and NFL Network and FOX Sports analyst Peter Schrager will all weigh in on this historic night and their outlook for the 2020 NFL season.

At 7:30 p.m. ET, Head Coach Ron Rivera will appear for instant reaction and analysis of the 2020 schedule.

Starting at 9 p.m. ET, following the 2020 NFL Schedule Release on the NFL Network, the Redskins’ livestreamed event will resume with appearances by former Ohio State Head Coach Urban Meyer, and current Redskins players Adrian Peterson, Chase Young, Ryan Kerrigan, and Thomas Davis Sr.

Redskins legends Joe Theismann, Santana Moss and London Fletcher will close out the event with a game-by-game schedule breakdown and discussion of their greatest memories playing against the 2020 Redskins opponents.

With that lineup of guests, this is definitely the party to be at on a Thursday night. We’ll see you there.

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How to watch Redskins virtual 2020 Schedule Release party

The Redskins are hosting a virtual party on Thursday night to celebrate the 2020 schedule release.

It may not be the NFL Draft or even a preseason game, but the National Football League will once again steal headlines on Thursday night when they release the 32 schedules for teams in the 2020 season. At this point, we’ll take whatever content we can get.

If a schedule release doesn’t sound like your type of party, I can’t blame you. However, for those of us who are starved for sports news and activities, this is a great day, and the NFL knows how excited we are. In order to accommodate all of our content needs, the Redskins are hosting a schedule release party on Thursday night, fit with a studded lineup of guests set to give their analysis on the schedule and team as a whole. Sound like your cup of tea? Here’s how you can tune in.

WHEN: Thursday, 7 p.m. ET

WHERE: Livestream on Redskins.com/Redskins Facebook/Redskins Twitter/NBC Sports Washington.

WHO: Matthew McConaughey, Urban Meyer, Peter Schrager, John Bernthal, Peter Berg, Ron Rivera, Adrian Peterson, Chase Young, Ryan Kerrigan, Thomas Davis, Joe Theismann, Santana Moss, London Fletcher.

EVENT COST: Free

To register for the event, go to Redskins.com/ScheduleRelease.

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Titans’ Mike Vrabel to appear on NFL ‘Schedule Release ’20’ show

Titans head coach Mike Vrabel will be part of the 2020 NFL schedule release show.

NFL Network will broadcast a three-hour “Schedule Release ’20” show on Thursday night starting at 7 p.m. CT, and Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel will be one of the guests.

The news comes from NFL Media on Twitter.

Prior to the show, the Titans plan to release their schedule at 6:30 p.m. CT.

While we don’t know exactly when the Titans’ games will be, we do know who their opponents are.

Tennessee will have home games against the Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Titans’ road games will be against the Texans, Colts, Jaguars, Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos.

A report by 710 ESPN’s John Clayton stated that the league is scheduling out-of-conference games first, which means the Titans would open up the first quarter of the season against the NFC North.

The reasoning behind this is just in case games have to be removed from the schedule to start the season because of the coronavirus pandemic, the ones with little future playoff implications will go first.

We’ll know exactly what the plan is and if the Titans will officially get any prime time games when the schedule is finally released on Thursday night.

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Don’t get excited for a Texans-Chiefs rematch in Week 1

The Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs may not meet in Week 1, according to a latest report from the Touchdown Wire.

Looking forward to the Houston Texans getting a shot at taking on the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in Arrowhead Stadium?

Don’t expect the rematch to happen during Week 1.

According to NFL insider John Clayton via Doug Farrar of the Touchdown Wire, as part of the NFL’s contingencies in case the COVID-19 pandemic affects the regular season, the first four games of the 2020 season will be inter-conference games across the board.

That means the Texans will likely play their entire NFC North slate of games in the first four weeks. If the NFL has to cancel games leading up to the eventual kickoff, having inter-conference games on the chopping block won’t be so deleterious to all the tiebreaker scenarios.

The 2020 NFL schedule releases at 7:00 p.m. Central Time on NFL Network Thursday night. In addition to playing their AFC South foes and the AFC North and NFC North, the Texans are slated to play the Chiefs and New England Patriots as their same-place finisher games.

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Five Vikings games most likely to be on prime time

Here are five games on the Vikings’ schedule that are most likely to be prime time!

Minnesota’s schedule will be released on Thursday at 7 p.m. C.T., but Vikings fans already know who the team will be playing.

There are the usual rivals from the NFC North, but there are also four games each from the AFC South and NFC South on the slate.  The Vikings also have two games against the NFC East and NFC West.

Last season, Minnesota had five prime time games. Those games were against the Redskins, Cowboys, Seahawks, Chargers and Packers. So, that got me thinking, which five games on the Vikings schedule are the most likely to be prime time this season?

Here’s a guess:

Minnesota Vikings @ Green Bay Packers

The Vikings will travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Packers, a matchup between two teams who made it to the playoffs last season. Both Green Bay and Minnesota are in the top 10 of ESPN’s power rankings. The Packers have Aaron Rodgers and a menacing front seven, so it should be a good matchup.

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Titans could start 2020 season with 4 games against NFC North teams

The Titans might be playing all NFC North teams in the first quarter of the 2020 season.

It looks as though the Tennessee Titans might start the 2020 season playing their first four games against NFC North opponents.

John Clayton of 710 ESPN Seattle has confirmed to USA TODAY Sports Media Group that he has heard from multiple sources that the NFL is planning on having teams play out-of-conference games to start the season.

The reason behind this is so that if games need to be cancelled at the start of the campaign because of the coronavirus pandemic, the ones with the least playoff implications will go first.

If this all holds true, the Titans will have games against the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions during the first four weeks of the season.

While we don’t know which order those games will be in, we do know that the Titans have home games against the Lions and Bears, and road games against the Packers and Vikings.

The Titans are set to release their official schedule at 6:30 p.m. CT on May 7 prior to the NFL Network schedule show at 7 p.m. CT.

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Report: NFL scheduling non-conference games first in case of need for shortened season

The Baltimore Ravens will face off against the NFC East first in the 2020 NFL season in case they need to be cut due to the coronavirus

The NFL is set to release the schedule for all 32 teams, including the Baltimore Ravens, on Thursday. But with the coronavirus pandemic still ongoing and no clear end in sight, precautions are being made in case there’s a need for a shortened season.

John Clayton confirmed to USA Today Sports Media Group the NFL is scheduling non-conference games first. Those games can more easily be cut without impacting playoff seeding as much in the event the 2020 NFL season has to be shortened due to social distancing rules still being in effect.

The Ravens are set to take on the NFC East this season, which means they’d see the following four teams in the first four weeks (the order isn’t released yet).

  • New York Giants at M&T Bank Stadium
  • Dallas Cowboys at M&T Bank Stadium
  • Washington Redskins at FedEx Field
  • Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field

The NFL has already eliminated any international games for the 2020 season, deciding to play every game in the United States for the first time since 2006. NFL executive vice president and general counsel Jeff Pash had previously said the league has been planning to start the season on time and play a full 16 games in front of fans.

The league has allowed teams to start virtual offseason workouts but have yet to announce any decisions on the timing or look of training camp and the preseason yet.

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4 Texans games in 2020 that must be in prime time

The Houston Texans are becoming a hot ticket in the NFL. Here are four games on their 2020 slate that ought to be prime time games.

The Houston Texans are one of the top dogs in the AFC thanks to their consecutive AFC South titles. Quarterback Deshaun Watson also provides an added element of making every game competitive and exciting.

Here are four Texans games NFL schedule makers ought to put in prime time.

1. Texans-Titans

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(Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)

Anytime a wild-card team surpasses the division winner in the playoffs, it is instantly elevated to must-see television. Was it a fluke that Tennessee got as far as the AFC Championship Game, just as it was bad luck on the Texans’ part that the Kansas City Chiefs caught fire and beat them 51-31 despite being down 24-0? Who really runs the AFC South?

Optimal viewing: Week 4, Monday Night Football, NRG Stadium. Get it out of the way early and give the Titans a chance to win a consequential game in Houston. In Week 17, the Texans had no incentive to play their starters, and Tennessee cruised to a 35-14 win that punched their ticket to the playoffs.

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Tennessee Titans’ 2020 schedule among easiest in the NFL

Based on over/under win totals, the Titans’ 2020 schedule is among the easiest in the NFL.

According to one method used to calculate strength of schedule, the Tennessee Titans’ slate is among the easiest in the NFL in 2020.

CBS Sports’ Jared Dubin uses over/under win totals to determine strength of schedule for every team in the NFL, which is a bit more accurate than the normal method of basing it on 2019 records.

Here’s an explanation of his method.

In order to figure out exactly how tough that schedule is, we turned to our friends at William Hill, who have set each team’s win total over-under for the 2020 season. Using those over-unders gives us a better idea of how those teams are expected to do in 2020 than does using their records from 2019.

Using that formula, the Titans rank second in terms of the easiest strength of schedule behind only the Indianapolis Colts. The Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars are tied for 16th with two other teams.

As we await the release of the Titans’ official schedule on May 7, we do know what teams they will be facing, both at home and on the road.

Take a look.

Home Opponents

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Detroit Lions

Pittsburgh Steelers

Away opponents

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Minnesota Vikings

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