One of the biggest midseason scheduling changes in NFL history will take place next month.
On Friday, the NFL announced that the Week 16 game between the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals will be removed from “Thursday Night Football” and replaced by the Denver Broncos at the Los Angeles Chargers.
This is the first time the league has used its flexible “Thursday Night Football” scheduling, which the league instituted in 2023. A game that is sure to have better implications in the playoffs will be moved to a prime time slot while also changing plans trip for fans of four teams a few days before Christmas.
As things stand now, four weeks before Thursday, Dec. 19, the Browns (3-8) traveling to face the Bengals (4-7) isn’t as appetizing as a matchup between the Broncos (6-5). and the Chargers (7-3) at SoFi Stadium. for what could be a battle for AFC postseason positioning.
Browns vs Bengals will now take place on Sunday, December 22 at 1 pm (Fox). The game on Thursday, December 19 between the Broncos and the Chargers will be broadcast on Amazon Prime.
The league debated all week about whether to move the game. Factors such as detailed broadcast rules, competitive advantages related to rest and moving games in a holiday week were considered.
The NFL introduced flexible scheduling for “Thursday Night Football” after owner approval in May 2023, and there was always a high bar to meet to flex a game. First, the league had to make the call at least 28 days after kickoff. Only games between Weeks 13 and 17 would be considered for Thursday’s flex. And only two Thursday night games could be flexed all year.
The NFL wanted to approve the Thursday night flex during the March 2023 league meetings, but team owners ultimately decided to postpone the move. Initially, the league wanted to have only 15 days’ notice instead of 28. Owners were mostly divided until Giants owner John Mara called the idea “abusive” toward paying customers, sources told CBS Sports at the time.
When asked then about fans whose travel would be affected by such a drastic change in scheduling, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said it was a “very, very important point.”
“Every owner in that room lives and breathes sensitivity toward those fans,” Jones said. “But only 7% of our fans have ever been inside a stadium. Seven percent. So there are a lot of fans, a large majority of the fans that are out there, that this is good for them.”
The NFL, its fans and broadcast partners are used to Sunday night flexing. For nearly two decades, the league has occasionally moved Sunday afternoon games to Sunday prime time. Last year, the league allowed flexibility for Thursday and Monday night games.
None of last season’s Thursday night games were ultimately flexible, but the league did make its first Monday night game. The league left the Chiefs against the Patriots in Week 15 for the Eagles to face the Seahawks.
Week 17 could also see some flex. The Seahawks are scheduled to face the Bears on Thursday, December 26, and a decision on that game won’t have to be made until next week. There are also five games that are currently TBD on the schedule, as three of them will be played on Saturday and the other two on Sunday.
Those five games (Broncos-Bengals, Cardinals-Rams, Colts-Giants, Chargers-Patriots and Falcons-Commanders) will be scheduled “at a later date during the season,” according to the league’s flexible policy.
