Thursday Night Football (1 Viewer)

[eaglezzz]

Is it just me or does it seem like a bad idea for all these Thursday night games? I can't get into them and there hasn't been a Thursday game that has even been exciting. I like the old way when half way through the season they started the Thursday games. Now they seem to mess up all Fantasy Football stuff as you need to get waivers and lineups in sooner, and the players are getting less rest and the quality of play seems worse. I am usually one to not argue more football but this year it seems like they over did it with all these early season Thursday Night Games. Anyone else not feeling it?

 

[ponchsox]

I like the Thursday night games but the matchups have been terrible. I understand the Patriots and Giants can't play 3 Thursday night games in a season, but they can move one of the better Sunday matchups to Thursday night. Next week isn't any better, Pittsburgh at Tennessee.

 

[everydayj]

Is it just me or does it seem like a bad idea for all these Thursday night games? I can't get into them and there hasn't been a Thursday game that has even been exciting. I like the old way when half way through the season they started the Thursday games. Now they seem to mess up all Fantasy Football stuff as you need to get waivers and lineups in sooner, and the players are getting less rest and the quality of play seems worse. I am usually one to not argue more football but this year it seems like they over did it with all these early season Thursday Night Games. Anyone else not feeling it?

I pretty much hate it.

 

[ImTheScientist]

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

 

[SayWhat?]

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

I'm an NFL junkie, and I'm not sure that I like it. I do feel like the product thus far has been less than stellar. It seems like that's a combination of the NFL putting some less deseriable matchups/teams on Thursday night as well as a lack of preparation due to the thus shortened week. I feel compelled to watch because I like the NFL so much, yet I've come out of every Thursday night game this year wishing I hadn't of wasted 3+ hours on a weeknight watching what have been some ugly games.

 

[Hang 10]

The NFL is definitely doing their best to over saturate the market with their product here. I really don't understand the point of adding another primetime game when it's not a primetime worthy matchup. What would be better would be adding the NFL network into the Sunday rotation. The NFL network could do a 4:25 game every Sunday.

 

[zed2283]

It's been better than I thought it would be.

 

[everydayj]

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

Plenty of reasons. I don't have NFL network, and I think that it's BS that you have to pay extra to see a game beyond what you already do. I love football, but I have a family to pay attention to. Two nights of the week is already stretching it if I really want to watch the games. I don't need another night of the week to even tempt me to pay attention to it just because the NFL wants more advertising money.

 

[Jobber]

Is it just me or does it seem like a bad idea for all these Thursday night games? I can't get into them and there hasn't been a Thursday game that has even been exciting. I like the old way when half way through the season they started the Thursday games. Now they seem to mess up all Fantasy Football stuff as you need to get waivers and lineups in sooner, and the players are getting less rest and the quality of play seems worse. I am usually one to not argue more football but this year it seems like they over did it with all these early season Thursday Night Games. Anyone else not feeling it?

I pretty much hate it.

Same here. There used to be something special about it, like it was a rare treat. Not to mention, I don't even get the games.

 

[Shutout]

Anything in excess, is bad.

As far as "how can a football fan NOT like it?" IMO, there are a few good reasons.

1) I'm not convinced we see the best product when teams have to play these quick turnaround games. I don't think teams can plan as well, I KNOW that players that would play on a Sunday have to miss Thursday games (Nicks and JSTEW this year are two that come to mind, as stated by their teams at the time).

2) I don't think it is the safest thing for players and I find that pretty hypocritical. The NFL goes out of its way to run ads talking about what they are doing to make the game safe and that they are pledging money to research, and they run these ads during games that are being played on 3 days rest. Long-term, it will be hard to measure the degree of player's careers we might see cut short due to playing so soon. Hard to measure, but existant, for sure.

3)There is something to be said about the tradition of sports. Day-game baseball games are always really cool. But they got moved years ago do to finances. baseball lost on that. Football is the same way. There is something that just "feels" right about how the entire schedule is compacted in a short time frame and the name "Monday Night Football" has a life of its own. Playing on Thursday also creeps into the college football fan's time table. I don't watch collegeball enough to say it affects me, but I'm sure there are some people out there that miss their "tradition" of watching some ball on Thursday, focussing on colege through Saturday, etc.

 

[scrumptrulescent]

It's annoying for trading. My league doesn't allow trading after the first game of the week has begun. You've got to get all you crap done before Thursday night.

I don't care otherwise. I have a life and most weeknights are full for me. I usually go out for MNF with friends but that's tradition. Thursday night football is overkill IMO.

 

[JH56]

As much as I thought I would like it......I truly hate it. I like the college games Thurs. night.

I like the idea of the NFL network carrying an extra game on Sundays though. This Thursday night experiment needs to end this year.

 

[ang12]

The league would show games every night, Thursday through Monday, if it were legal.

 

[Clifford]

More football to be able to watch. If you don't like it the other options are still there. Don't really see the conflict other than a few league's rules.

I'm in favor even if they are not "primetime" matchups.

 

[Sarnoff]

The players are bad on Thursdays. They need the rest, 4 days is not enough.

Next season Thursday games should only be between teams coming off a bye.

 

[10tihwj]

Cleveland/Baltimore was a good game with an exciting finish.

 

[just_want_2_win]

I don't like Thursday games much. I don't think the quick turnaround from Sunday to Thursday provides the players enough rest or the coaching staff enough game prep time. The impact of that on game quality is pretty apparent, though some might try to attribute that to the match ups themselves. Having to play another game so soon makes the players more prone to injury because the shortened week provides them less time to recover from injury and shake off fatigue.

Another reason I don't like it is from a fantasy perspective -- it makes it harder to plan lineups because some players lock on Thursday while others may not until Monday. This makes it an even bigger pain to try to work around injuries and byes. It also makes it a bit harder to make trades since some players are locking just two days after the beginning of the fantasy week, which runs Tuesday - Sunday morning in most leagues I've been in.

However, it's here to stay, I'm sure. People watch it and the league (owners, players, et al) profit from them.

 

[houston]

Only thing I don't like is that there are a lot of division games. Fun to see division games, but not fun to have division games on a short week given how important they are.

 

[SameSongNDance]

I only have to wait three days max to watch the next football game? Yes please.

 

[Skeetcher]

I like it.

Re the family issue I am fortunate that I am on the east coast and my kids are young enough that I can put them to bed then settle down to watch some mid-week football

The games themselves have (for the most part) sucked though.

 

[Dought Man]

waters down the product too much. These guys aren't built for the quick turnaround.

It's like asking Ron Jeremy to film feature films back to back. He needs a little break..

 

[The_Wolfman]

I'm the biggest NFL fan I know and before the season started I was thrilled to hear there would be Thursday games all season long. Who doesn't want an extra day of football, right? Well now that we're underway I find myself surprisingly not liking it at all. As others have pointed out, the short week and less than stellar matchups have made TNF something to "deal with" rather than something to look forward to.

It totally messes things up from a fantasy perspective too. I've already been burned once by it, watched Anquan Boldin light up the Browns last week from my bench, only to find out the next day that Nicks was out for Sunday. Had I known that prior, Boldin certainly would have been in my line up.

The NFL finally did the seemingly impossible - provided us with too much football. They should go back to the old format of starting TNF late in the season, then it felt more special and less impact on fantasy.

 

[JHuber77]

4 days of rest in between Sunday and Thursday. After the Thursday game, they have 10 days to rest. Every team gets to play on Thursday so the better matchups will be later in the season and most being divisional games that might decide playoff implications. Whats the problem? Bunch of babies crying because 1 Thursday matchup was less than ideal. And contrary to what that red bearded guy on the NFL network says, they could care less about your fantasy team. Its all about revenue.

 

[Quibbler]

It totally messes things up from a fantasy perspective too. I've already been burned once by it, watched Anquan Boldin light up the Browns last week from my bench, only to find out the next day that Nicks was out for Sunday. Had I known that prior, Boldin certainly would have been in my line up.

This. I hate having to make decisions before we know about Friday practices.

 

[Ignoratio Elenchi]

Hate it for numerous reasons:

For one, I think there is something to the idea that teams play worse on short rest. I don't need to see two exhausted teams playing on Thursday, I'd rather see two fully rested teams play on Sunday. I want players to stay healthy and be well-prepared so the best product is on the field.

It messes with fantasy stuff; now I have to check earlier in the week if I have any Thursday players going that need to get in my lineup, and maybe forces me to make lineup or waiver decisions earlier than I'd otherwise like to (e.g. if I have a questionable QB playing Sunday and his backup playing Thursday, I now have to decide Thursday night which one I want to start). It gives less time to get trades worked out before the fantasy week starts, etc. Mildly annoying.

But the main reason is it's just oversaturation. I've always thought that the great thing about football compared to all the other major American sports is that it's just one big day a week (with the exception of MNF, of course). I have a feeling there may be a strong East Coast/West Coast divide on this, but now it's three nights a week I'm up until midnight watching football, and all three nights I have work the next morning. I have other things I need to be doing, I can't waste all day Sunday AND three nights every week watching football, so I end up just not watching the Thursday games anyway. It was fun having football on Thanksgiving Day every year as a special Thursday event, but this every Thursday bull#### just takes away the novelty of it. We're only a couple weeks in and I'm sick of it already. Didn't watch a minute of the Rams-Cards game last night.

NFL: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

[Premier]

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

Plenty of reasons. I don't have NFL network, and I think that it's BS that you have to pay extra to see a game beyond what you already do. I love football, but I have a family to pay attention to. Two nights of the week is already stretching it if I really want to watch the games. I don't need another night of the week to even tempt me to pay attention to it just because the NFL wants more advertising money.

So don't watch?Some of you people act like you're being gagged and tied.

 

[Mello]

Don't mind the games themselves, but it's a negative for FF.

 

[andrew11]

I hate it. This isn't baseball or basketball. There was something to be said about the NFL having all their games played on Sunday. With of course MNF to follow. But Thursday Night football is overkill.

 

[Ignoratio Elenchi]

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

Plenty of reasons. I don't have NFL network, and I think that it's BS that you have to pay extra to see a game beyond what you already do. I love football, but I have a family to pay attention to. Two nights of the week is already stretching it if I really want to watch the games. I don't need another night of the week to even tempt me to pay attention to it just because the NFL wants more advertising money.

So don't watch?Some of you people act like you're being gagged and tied.

The question is asking if we like it. We don't.

Imagine you have a show you love watching every Sunday. Then for whatever reason, the producers decide to split it up into three different parts and show each part on a different night of the week. You wouldn't be somewhat annoyed by that? If you expressed your annoyance at the schedule change, what good would it do to tell you "don't watch"? It's your favorite show, of course you want to watch.

I don't know your situation, but there may also be a bit of a divide between older/younger, working/students, married/single, parents/no kids, etc. I've got a wife and a son and a house to maintain and a job to wake up for every morning and a million other demands on my time. I like sitting down on Sunday to watch football. I don't want to watch football three days a week. Saying "don't watch" is missing the point - I want to watch. The NFL is just making that much more inconvenient for me now.

 

[ponchsox]

Another reason I like the Thursday night games is it gives me a chance to see players I wouldn't normally watch because I'm watching my team or the best games on Sunday. For example, two weeks ago I got to see Trent Richardson play the entire game. I would never watch the Browns play unless the were facing my team.

 

[Clifford]

The players are bad on Thursdays. They need the rest, 4 days is not enough.

Next season Thursday games should only be between teams coming off a bye.

Tell that to Greg Little, Trent Richardson, Joe Flacco, Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith, Eli Manning, Ramses Barden, Andre Brown, etc...

 

[Ghost Rider]

More football is always better, but the Thursday night games heavily favor defenses. Look it up: most of the Thursday night games over the last year have been relatively low scoring (FYI, if you are a betting man and took the Under in every one of them, you'd be rolling in cash). The quick turnaround simply seems to favor defenses.

 

[just_want_2_win]

Hate it for numerous reasons:

For one, I think there is something to the idea that teams play worse on short rest. I don't need to see two exhausted teams playing on Thursday, I'd rather see two fully rested teams play on Sunday. I want players to stay healthy and be well-prepared so the best product is on the field.

It messes with fantasy stuff; now I have to check earlier in the week if I have any Thursday players going that need to get in my lineup, and maybe forces me to make lineup or waiver decisions earlier than I'd otherwise like to (e.g. if I have a questionable QB playing Sunday and his backup playing Thursday, I now have to decide Thursday night which one I want to start). It gives less time to get trades worked out before the fantasy week starts, etc. Mildly annoying.

But the main reason is it's just oversaturation. I've always thought that the great thing about football compared to all the other major American sports is that it's just one big day a week (with the exception of MNF, of course). I have a feeling there may be a strong East Coast/West Coast divide on this, but now it's three nights a week I'm up until midnight watching football, and all three nights I have work the next morning. I have other things I need to be doing, I can't waste all day Sunday AND three nights every week watching football, so I end up just not watching the Thursday games anyway. It was fun having football on Thanksgiving Day every year as a special Thursday event, but this every Thursday bull#### just takes away the novelty of it. We're only a couple weeks in and I'm sick of it already. Didn't watch a minute of the Rams-Cards game last night.

NFL: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

I'm on the Left Coast and I still don't like it. I agree that having most of the games on Sunday was special, kinda like the old days as a kid when Saturday mornings were for cartoons. And you make a good point about Thanksgiving.

 

[mozzy84]

I like it.

Re the family issue I am fortunate that I am on the east coast and my kids are young enough that I can put them to bed then settle down to watch some mid-week football

The games themselves have (for the most part) sucked though.

I always dvr the thursday games, start it around 9pm and I'm done right around the same time its normally done (plus I don't have to watch the 300 commercials). I like it anyways...

 

[TxBuckeye]

I don't care for it. I think the games have shown that quality suffers on Thursday nights. However, I don't care if the league continues to do it. I simply don't watch the game. The only time it does matter to me is when one of my teams is being shown. Then I dislike it just for the simple fact that I know they won't be as well prepared and will probably play even more crappily than usual. I still won't schedule around it though. Weeknights belong to family, friends, and a good night's sleep for work the next day. So I simply don't let it inconvenience me.

 

[Johnny Blood]

More football is always better

So having a game every day would be better? I disagree.I'm not a huge fan of this. I do think it is oversaturation.

 

[Please See Mine]

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

Plenty of reasons. I don't have NFL network, and I think that it's BS that you have to pay extra to see a game beyond what you already do. I love football, but I have a family to pay attention to. Two nights of the week is already stretching it if I really want to watch the games. I don't need another night of the week to even tempt me to pay attention to it just because the NFL wants more advertising money.

So don't watch?Some of you people act like you're being gagged and tied.

Surely you consider this reply compelling.

I love it. Not sure how you can be a fan of the game and not like it.

I'm an NFL junkie, and I'm not sure that I like it. I do feel like the product thus far has been less than stellar. It seems like that's a combination of the NFL putting some less deseriable matchups/teams on Thursday night as well as a lack of preparation due to the thus shortened week. I feel compelled to watch because I like the NFL so much, yet I've come out of every Thursday night game this year wishing I hadn't of wasted 3+ hours on a weeknight watching what have been some ugly games.

 

[larry_boy_44]

The players are bad on Thursdays. They need the rest, 4 days is not enough. Next season Thursday games should only be between teams coming off a bye.

I was going to say just this.If they must have Thursday games have one game week 1 and then have the Thursday game be between teams coming off of byes every week.In fact give teams 2 byes to make extra space and more opportunity for the Thursday night games to exist. Have bye weeks start in, say, week 3 and continue with at least 2 teams each week until week 12-14 and have a Thursday game between 2 bye week teams each of those weeks. Then you can move Thursday to Friday/Saturday night for the last few weeks (because college ball is over)

 

[Please See Mine]

More football is always better

So having a game every day would be better? I disagree.I'm not a huge fan of this. I do think it is oversaturation.

The games are going to be played regardless. Now you have more flexibility and OPTIONS to watch more games.

 

[Johnny Blood]

I would hate that. So in a single season you'd have games on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays? One of the charms of the NFL is that it's not something you can tune in (or zone out from) any day of the week.

I realize there are already playoff games on Saturdays but, hey, it's the playoffs.

 

[Banger]

it's annoying for pickups, lineups and injuries. I was fine with football on sunday/monday

 

[Johnny Blood]

More football is always better

So having a game every day would be better? I disagree.I'm not a huge fan of this. I do think it is oversaturation.

The games are going to be played regardless. Now you have more flexibility and OPTIONS to watch more games.

But not necessarily more desire to watch games. Habit, tradition, and a regular schedule can all play a role in creating demand. Taken to an extreme I would suggest desire to watch the games would slightly drop. It's surely possible that something which caused the massive popularity of the league is its restricted and traditional schedule.The way to maximize OPTIONS is to never play concurrent games, which is entirely possible. That would be foolish. Now the only question is, at what point does the schedule become too much.

 

[Sienna2012]

I love it. If you don't like it, watch something else. For example, I watched a little bit of game last night, but then it got boring, so I watched something else.

 

[dollarbill13]

Hopefully it was just a power play to force the cable companies to pick up NFL Network.

 

[Mello]

Hopefully it was just a power play to force the cable companies to pick up NFL Network.

It started that way with the first 8 games. Almost every cable provider has come to a deal with the NFLN now though.

 

[Jstack34]

Hate it. Most people i know hate it too. Everyone liked it in theory, but we have all come to realize the games provided no interest.

 

[zandbak]

Fans love it. It's going to stay.

 

[Jobber]

Fans love it. It's going to stay.

Did you read this thread?

 

[Shutout]

Another reason I like the Thursday night games is it gives me a chance to see players I wouldn't normally watch because I'm watching my team or the best games on Sunday. For example, two weeks ago I got to see Trent Richardson play the entire game. I would never watch the Browns play unless the were facing my team.

In other words, you (and many of the rest of us) are being duped by the NFL into watching games that, given other options, we would never choose to watch. The NFL has all these dog matchups that would never be the revenue generators when tossed into the rest of the weekly lineup, so they put them out there and "showcase" them as a "take it or leave it...it's the only thing going" type of broadcast. Like someone said above, now that it is on every Thursday, I never find myself looking forward to watching the game. My only interest in it is the fantasy impact at this point. I think there is a reason why we don't get a Patriots/Broncos Thursday nighter this week instead of one weakened down divisional game after another. I mean, think about it, in August, didn't 99% of us look at that game last night on the schedule and think "probably two 1-4 teams going that night"? I know that MNF and now SNF typically has what appears at the time to be a very interesting matchup, but in a week like this week, could there really have been a less interesting game played by a team that wasn't coming off MNF or bye?

These Thursday games have devolved into the equivalent of "ugly girls in a bar at 3am". Yeah, its ugly and you don't want no part of it, but the bar owner knows that when its the only girl in the bar, you're still gonna be interested.

 

[Christo]