The NHL playoffs begin tonight on Food Network Versus, and I was afraid I was going to have to pay attention. Fortunately, the NFL had its annual schedule release orgy on NFL Network today, so I can now focus on Chicago Bears Ws instead of the impending Detroit Red Wings first-round playoff L.
Looking at the schedule, here are the 10 games I’m most interested in. There are even some that do not involve the Chargers!:
Nov. 29 — Green Bay at Dallas, NFL Network. It might be a stretch for top 10, but this is really the only NFL Network game I found interesting other than Bears-Redskins the following week. Overhyped Story Warning: The 40th anniversary of the Ice Bowl is this year, and Cowboys QB “Slick Fingers” Tony Romo is originally from Wisconsin. (This game would be awesome if it were, like, 1995.)
Sept. 24 — New Orleans at Tennessee, ESPN. We like the Reggie Bush vs. Vince Young angle here. It’s also the one-year anniversary of the Louisiana Superdome reopening. It’s also the one-year anniversary of ESPN’s mawkish coverage of the Louisiana Superdome reopening.
Sept. 23 — Dallas at Chicago, NBC. I’m very much going to enjoy the epic beatdown the Bears defense is going to give Terrell Owens.
Nov. 22 — N.Y. Jets at Dallas, CBS. The most interesting of the three Thanksgiving games gives us Cowboys RB Julius Jones vs. new Jets RB Thomas Jones in a brother vs. brother matchup. We give the edge to Thomas, since Marion Barber III usually vultures all of Julius’s yards.
Nov. 26 — Miami at Pittsburgh, ESPN. Anybody who thinks ex-Steeler LB Joey Porter doesn’t hold a grudge has never shot him in the buttocks.
Sept. 16 — San Diego at New England, NBC. The Chargers couldn’t get it done vs. New England in the playoffs last season, but I’m curious to see if they can get it done with, um … Norv Turner … as coach. I’m also curious to see how many children Tom Brady will have fathered by kickoff.
Nov. 4 — New England at Indianapolis, CBS. True, we are weary of the Brady vs. Manning thing, but we’re mostly interested in seeing how many points the Patriots are up on the Colts before Bill Belichick blows the lead.
Nov. 11 — Indianapolis at San Diego, NBC. This really would’ve been a sweet AFC championship game.
Sept. 9 — Chicago at San Diego, FOX. This was the Super Bowl XLI match I was pulling for and probably would’ve got had the Chargers not choked. It would’ve been great to watch the Bears defense vs. LaDainian Tomlinson.
Nov. 4 — Houston at Oakland, CBS. Are they serious? They’re actually going to play this game? This I have to see.
You may be onto something. They’ll send one guy out with a camera, and then just loop the audio from the Houston vs. Oakland game from 2006 over the live image. Nobody will even notice.
Actually, I might watch the game, then.
I’m curious to see which announcing team CBS assigns to this game. You know your career might not be on the right path when you’re calling Raiders/Texans. Maybe they’ll just send one guy with a camera and not have any announcers.
Houston vs. Oakland. Really? Do we need that game?
Personally, that’s a game that the NFL shouldn’t even bother playing. Instead, they should just have the teams sit down at a PS3 at the 50 yard line and duke it out that way on the jumbo tron. Would probably be much more intriguing.