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With the college regular season over, the NFL is now able to have games on Saturdays. That brings this week's total of nationwide broadcasts up to five.
NATIONAL BROADCASTS
A couple weeks ago the league flexed the San Francisco - Dallas game out of the Sunday night spotlight. The Cowboys had looked pathetic on national television one too many times and the NFL wanted to avoid showcasing yet another embarrassing performance. CBS got the Niners-Cowboys in exchange for the Browns-Giants game. Despite the combined record of 9-17, that game will be beamed into the majority of neutral markets rather than one of the four other options that includes a team with a winning record.
WFXT-25 in Boston will not broadcast the Bucs game on Sunday, opting not to go head-to-head with the Pats game on CBS. I thought that was a bit surprising considering the Pats are all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, figuring many in the area would tune in to see Brady and Gronk. All the other Fox affiliates in New England will broadcast Tampa Bay at Atlanta.
As for the Pats-Dolphins, it did manage to get some neutral market distribution. That game will air in New York (of interest to Buffalo fans) and through much of the southeast. Ian Eagle and Charles 'anybody is better than Dan Fouts' Davis will be the announcers.
CBS Early
█ New England @ Miami; Ian Eagle, Charles Davis
█ San Francisco @ Dallas; Kevin Harlan, Trent Green
█ Houston @ Indianapolis; Greg Gumbel, Rich Gannon
█ Jacksonville @ Baltimore; Andrew Catalon, James Lofton
█ Detroit @ Tennessee; Spero Dedes, Adam Archuleta
The late game on CBS is the best matchup of the week: Kansas City at New Orleans. That will be broadcast everywhere except in Arizona, due to the NFL's archaic rule of no other game on television when the local team is playing at home at the same time.
Fox Single
Early:
█ Tampa Bay @ Atlanta; Kevin Burkhardt, Daryl Johnston
█ Seattle @ Washington; Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma
█ Chicago @ Minnesota; Chris Myers, Greg Jennings
Late:
█ NY Jets @ LA Rams (LATE)Kevin Kugler, Brock Huard
█ Philadelphia @ Arizona (LATE)Brandon Gaudin, Aqib Talib
NATIONAL BROADCASTS
- Thursday Night: LA Chargers @ Las Vegas (FOX/NFLN)
- Saturday 4:30 ET: Buffalo @ Denver (NFLN) (Adam Amin, Mark Schlereth)
- Saturday 8:15 ET: Carolina @ Green Bay (NFLN) (Mike Tirico, Kurt Warner)
- Sunday Night: Cleveland @ NY Giants (NBC)
- Monday Night: Pittsburgh @ Cincinnati (ESPN)
A couple weeks ago the league flexed the San Francisco - Dallas game out of the Sunday night spotlight. The Cowboys had looked pathetic on national television one too many times and the NFL wanted to avoid showcasing yet another embarrassing performance. CBS got the Niners-Cowboys in exchange for the Browns-Giants game. Despite the combined record of 9-17, that game will be beamed into the majority of neutral markets rather than one of the four other options that includes a team with a winning record.
WFXT-25 in Boston will not broadcast the Bucs game on Sunday, opting not to go head-to-head with the Pats game on CBS. I thought that was a bit surprising considering the Pats are all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, figuring many in the area would tune in to see Brady and Gronk. All the other Fox affiliates in New England will broadcast Tampa Bay at Atlanta.
As for the Pats-Dolphins, it did manage to get some neutral market distribution. That game will air in New York (of interest to Buffalo fans) and through much of the southeast. Ian Eagle and Charles 'anybody is better than Dan Fouts' Davis will be the announcers.
CBS Early
█ New England @ Miami; Ian Eagle, Charles Davis
█ San Francisco @ Dallas; Kevin Harlan, Trent Green
█ Houston @ Indianapolis; Greg Gumbel, Rich Gannon
█ Jacksonville @ Baltimore; Andrew Catalon, James Lofton
█ Detroit @ Tennessee; Spero Dedes, Adam Archuleta
The late game on CBS is the best matchup of the week: Kansas City at New Orleans. That will be broadcast everywhere except in Arizona, due to the NFL's archaic rule of no other game on television when the local team is playing at home at the same time.
Fox Single
Early:
█ Tampa Bay @ Atlanta; Kevin Burkhardt, Daryl Johnston
█ Seattle @ Washington; Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma
█ Chicago @ Minnesota; Chris Myers, Greg Jennings
Late:
█ NY Jets @ LA Rams (LATE)Kevin Kugler, Brock Huard
█ Philadelphia @ Arizona (LATE)Brandon Gaudin, Aqib Talib