Tag: primetime games

A closer look at the Seahawks 2023 regular-season schedule

The Seattle Seahawks will play three prime-time games during the 2023 NFL regular season, including Thanksgiving Day against the 49ers.

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The Seattle Seahawks’ 2023 NFL regular-season schedule was released Thursday night, with the team slated to open the year at home against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, Sept. 10.

Seattle will play three prime-time games, two on Thursday nights and one Monday-night matchup. The first comes in Week 4 against the Giants on Monday, Oct. 2. Next up is the Thanksgiving Day contest at Lumen Field, when the Seahawks host the division-rival 49ers. Exactly a week later, Seattle travels to Dallas for their third and final primetime game, Thursday, Nov. 30 at the Cowboys.

The Seahawks will play a total of nine road games this season with four 10:00 am PT starts. Seattle was also dealt its earliest bye week – Week 5 – since 2016.

Only the date and time of one game remains to be determined, the Week 18 matchup against the Cardinals in Arizona. The NFL will release the details of that contest following the Week 17 lineup.

The Seahawks’ complete 2023 regular-season schedule can be found here.

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2023 schedule: Bears to play in 4 prime-time games

The Bears are set to play in four prime-time games this season. Here is a quick breakdown of each matchup.

The 2023 NFL schedule is officially out and fans of the Chicago Bears finally know when and where the team will play this fall. The Bears released their schedule on Thursday evening and it features plenty of high-profile matchups from the NFC and AFC. Four of those games are set to be featured in prime time, with the potential for more.

Here is a quick breakdown of the Bears’ prime-time matchups that are solidified for the 2023 season.

Who are the Jets playing in prime time in 2023?

Who are the Jets playing in prime time in 2023?

Once Aaron Rodgers came to town, expectations went sky high for the New York Jets in 2023 and the schedule-makers were ready to put as much spotlight on the team as possible this season.

Sure enough, the Jets received not only the maximum of five prime-time games, but also a national game on Black Friday as well as four other games in the 4:25 Sunday window.

So who are the Jets going to be under the lights against? Let’s take a look. This will be the five actual night games plus the Black Friday game for the Jets.

NFL gives the Lions 4 prime-time games on 2023 schedule

The Lions are

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One year ago, the Detroit Lions were shut out of primetime. Not a single game on the 2022 NFL schedule featured the Lions playing under the lights on a national stage.

How things have changed in a year!

Thanks to a torrid finish to the 2022 season and a growing buzz around the league, the Lions will be featured three times. That includes the very first game of the season, opening Week 1 in Kansas City on Thursday Night Football on September 7th.

It’s quite a jump from last season’s schedule release, where Detroit was blanked from primetime national games. The Week 18 win over the Packers in Green Bay was flexed into the Sunday Night Football slot, but that was the Lions’ lone appearance.

After opening on Thursday night in Kansas City, the Lions are also in primetime in Week 4 in Green Bay–also on Thursday night–and Week 8 at home against the Raiders on Monday Night Football. Detroit will also play on Saturday night at Dallas in Week 17, another national game. That doesn’t count the traditional national broadcast for the Thanksgiving early afternoon game, which features the Packers in Ford Field.

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Predicting the Bears’ prime-time matchups in 2023

Which Bears games will be featured in prime time this season? We make our predictions ahead of the 2023 schedule release.

The annual NFL schedule extravaganza is finally upon us and soon, fans of every team will learn when and where they will play their opponents during the 2023 season. The NFL is set to announce the complete schedule for the 2023 season this Thursday at 7 p.m. CT. That announcement also includes the prime-time schedule, where specific matchups will be picked to be featured nationally on Thursday nights, Sunday nights, Monday nights, some Saturday nights, and special holidays.

For the Chicago Bears, national interest may appear to be lower than in previous years. They were the worst team in 2022, coming off a 3-14 record, and weren’t particularly competitive to close out the year. But with a young nucleus led by quarterback Justin Fields and a team that looks revamped following a busy spring, the Bears could be in more for more prime-time slots than we think. Chicago has had three or more games featured in prime time every season dating back to 2016 and there’s no reason to think that changes this year.

Here are our predictions for the Bears’ 2023 prime-time matchups.

Lions vs. Packers flexed to Sunday night in Week 18

Detroit vs. Green Bay will be the final game of the entire regular season

The Detroit Lions will get a primetime game in the 2022 season after all. Detroit’s Week 18 visit to Green Bay was flexed by the NFL to being the final game of the regular season.

The NFL announced the schedule for Week 18 on Monday. The Lions and Packers will be the Sunday Night Football game on NBC and the last game of the year.

The game is rife with playoff implications. Green Bay seizes the final NFC playoff spot with a win. Detroit can get into the postseason if the Lions win and the Seattle Seahawks lose to the Los Angeles Rams. That NFC West game will be in the late-afternoon window immediately before the Lions play the Packers. Both Detroit and Green Bay are 8-8.

Detroit was shut out from nationally televised games aside from the traditional early Thanksgiving game against the Bills this year. The Lions won the first meeting with the Packers, 15-9, and also won in Green Bay in Week 18 last season.

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5 Broncos games that should be in prime time this season with Russell Wilson in town

The Broncos’ full schedule will come out tomorrow night. The NFL should put these five games in prime time.

The NFL schedule release is Thursday, so in the meantime, let’s speculate on how many prime-time games the Denver Broncos, now with Russell Wilson, are set to have next season.

For context, it’s already announced the Broncos will travel to London next season to face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The team is also set to face off against the defending Super Bowl champions, the Los Angeles Rams, on Christmas Day.

And for reference, the max number of initially-scheduled prime-time games is five. But the London and Christmas games don’t count toward that total despite being nationally televised. That’s because Sunday Night Football, Monday Night Football, Thursday Night Football are the prime time allotments for the initially-scheduled prime-time games. And the London game starts at 7:30 a.m., while the Christmas game starts at 2:30 p.m. — which is not one of the evening games.

Without further ado, here are the Broncos games that Broncos Wire thinks should be in prime next season.

Broncos vs. Chiefs

Storyline: Can the Broncos finally beat the Kansas City Chiefs with Russell Wilson?

Broncos vs. Raiders

Storyline: Josh McDaniels returns to Denver after destroying Mike Shanahan’s set-in-stone offense of Jay Cutler, Peyton Hillis, Brandon Marshall, Eddie Royal and Tony Scheffler.

Broncos vs. Ravens

Storyline: One of the sport’s best QBs of the last decade up against one of the best upcoming QBs challenged with being the face of the league for the next decade. Also, welcome back, Derek Wolfe.

Broncos vs. 49ers

Storyline: A potential Super Bowl preview, Wilson faces off with a former division rival. Yes, I said it, the Broncos have the seventh-best odds. Kyle Shanahan, meanwhile, has appeared in two of the past three NFC Championship games. Never forget: his team was up 10 late in the 4th on the Rams’ side of the field last season when Elijah Mitchel ran for nine yards on first down. The 49ers did not convert a first down on the drive, and the rest is history.

Broncos vs. Seahawks

Storyline: Burying the lede, Wilson faces off against his old team. While pundits believe Drew Lock is set to start for the Seattle Seahawks, don’t be surprised to see Geno Smith under center for this tilt.

You can check out the Broncos’ opponents for next season here.

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The Lions did not earn any primetime games in 2020

The Lions did not earn any primetime games in 2020 and it’s a deserved slight from the NFL for the way the team has performed

The Detroit Lions will not make a single appearance on any national primetime games in 2020. No Monday Night Football. No Sunday night games to a national audience. Not even a single Thursday night matchup.

That is not by accident. The NFL doles out primetime appearances based on star power, a track record of success, fan excitement, expectations for the season and more. And the Detroit Lions fail to check any of those boxes on a national level.

It’s a harsh reality, but it’s where the Lions are as the team enters Year 3 of Matt Patricia’s coaching reign. They’ve won nine games in two seasons and carry a 9-game losing streak into the season. Their most marketable player from recent times, Darius Slay, is now in Philadelphia. The franchise cornerstone QB, Matthew Stafford, has broken bones in his back two straight years.

The Lions get their one moment to shine under the national spotlight on Thanksgiving. That’s all they have earned. Finishing in the bottom third in both offense and defense a year ago, playing a grinding style with a roster that lacks national cache and star power, the Lions simply don’t move the needle enough to draw in fans from other cities.

It’s up to the team to change that narrative. If they want to flip the script and earn primetime games, it means winning more games. The over/under for the Lions win total in 2020 is 6.5, not exactly dreadful but also not bullish. But it also means being exciting and buzzworthy, something the Lions are not.

Take the Arizona Cardinals, a team that finished 5-10-1 in 2019 and has one fewer win than the Lions in the last two years. The Cardinals will play two games in primetime and have a good chance for a third late in the year with the NFL’s flex scheduling. Kyler Murray throwing to DeAndre Hopkins and Larry Fitzgerald is marketable, and their dynamic young coach Kliff Kingsbury living in what appears to be a Bond villain house helps raise the profile.

There is a real opportunity here for Patricia and the Lions to rally around the national disrespect. “Detroit vs. Everybody” is a readymade catchphrase for a team that has several underappreciated talents on a national level (Kenny Golladay, Tracy Walker, Trey Flowers, Frank Ragnow, even Stafford) and a style of play that will be difficult for opponents. Embrace the lack of recognition, the painfully low expectations and shock the world. Then they’ll have to make room for the Lions all over the primetime schedule in 2021.

But until that happens, the Lions have not earned the right to be under the national spotlight.

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How many nationally televised games will the Broncos have this season?

How many primetime games will the Broncos have this season?

The NFL announced the Denver Broncos 2020 schedule on Thursday. The Broncos are scheduled to have three nationally televised primetime games this season but that total is subject to change.

Here’s a look at the Broncos’ scheduled nationally televised contests:

Game Week Date Television
Week 1: Broncos vs. Titans Monday, Sept. 14 at 8:15 p.m. ESPN
Week 4: Broncos @ Jets Thursday, Oct. 1 at 6:20 p.m. Fox
Week 13: Broncos @ Chiefs Sunday, Dec. 6 at 6:20 p.m. NBC

All late afternoon games between Weeks 5-16 are eligible to be flexed to Sunday Night Football on NBC. So Denver could have another game flexed to SNF (or their matchup against KC could be flexed out of SNF).

The Broncos’ game against the Bills (Week 15) and their home game against the Chargers (Week 16) have yet to be determined dates, times and television network statuses. It’s possible that the Buffalo game (Dec. 19 or Dec. 20) and/or Los Angeles game (Dec. 26 or Dec. 27) could also be nationally televised this season.

The dates, times and TV networks for Denver’s games in Weeks 15-16 will be announced no later than four weeks before those contests.

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2020 Lions schedule: Instant takeaways

An instant reaction to the Detroit Lions 2020 schedule release, examining the highlights and lowlights for the upcoming season.

The Detroit Lions 2020 schedule has been released, so let’s take a look at the highlights and lowlights for the upcoming season.

Nationally televised games

After a disappointing 3-12-1 season, it’s not overly surprising that the Lions were not awarded any primetime television games. In fact, the only regular-season game that will be nationally televised is on Thanksgiving day against the Houston Texans. Thankfully it’s not the Chicago Bears for the third season in a row.

The Lions do have two late in the season flex games in Week 15 (at Tennessee Titans) and Week 16 (versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) that could get pushed into the national spotlight if both teams are playing well and have potential playoff implications.

If one of the two games does get flexed, the early money has to be on the Week 16 game, as the Bucs, with a ton of offensive talent and Tom Brady in the fold, are expected to make for great television.

Additionally, if you’re looking for a bright spot, the Lions will have a pre-season nationally televised game on Thursday, August, 20th at home against the New York Jets at 8:00 PM EST on ESPN.

Lions have an early BYE Week …again

The Lions BYE week will be in Week 5 for the second conservative season. This marks the fourth season in a row where the Lions have had to take their BYE week in the first half of their schedule as they had a BYE Week in Week 6 in 2018 and Week 7 in 2017.

Away early, home late

The Lions open up their schedule at home against the Bears, but after Week 1, they will only host one other home game (versus the New Orleans Saints) over the next six weeks of the season.

One of the benefits of traveling early on in the season is there will be a lot of home cooking down the stretch. Four of the Lions final six games will be in the friendly confines of Ford Field, ending the season with back-to-back home games against the Bucs (Week 16) and Minnesota Vikings (Week 17).

Positive weather games

Players are always concerned about where they will play games late in the year hoping for better weather and this year Lions players surely happy with this outcome.

Of the games the Lions play after Thanksgiving, only Week 13 (December 6) at Chicago could be problematic. After that, three of the final four games are in the comfy dome of Ford Field, while their late December away game is in Tennessee, where the weather typically sits at 49-degrees and rarely drops below 33-degrees throughout the month.

Opponents 2019 record

The 2019 record of the Lions opponents is 103-104-1, which doesn’t seem terrible, but when you factor in the Lions play their division opponents twice that number goes up to 134-121-1. Less fun.

Spinning this back to the positive, when looking at the 134-121-1 record, the majority of those wins will be traveling to Ford Field. The records of the Lions home opponents was 71-57, meaning the Lions will get their tougher opponents (on average) at home while having to face teams on the road who had a collective record of 63-64-1 last year.

It’s not always about who teams face, but also when and where.

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