If you combined the win-loss records, the number one game of the NFL’s entire Week 11 slate is between the 7-2 Seattle Seahawks and 7-2 Los Angeles Rams. It’s for first place in the NFC West and possibly the top spot in the entire conference, and it’s a longstanding rivalry matchup.
And yet, it’s a game that is limited to the 1:05 pm PT window on FOX. Heck, it looks as if it won’t even get hte lead broadcast team of Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady, who are scheduled for the 10 am PT game between the Chicago
Bears and Minnesota Vikings.
It’s not like the Rams are some anonymous team, while the Seahawks have consistently been a night game fixture for well over a decade. So, what gives?
The reasons why Seahawks vs. Rams can’t be flexed to prime time
Different flex windows for different prime time slots
If you’re unaware of the television rules, there are windows for flex scheduling eligibility. NBC’s Sunday Night Football flex window begins in Week 5, while Monday Night Football’s window is between Weeks 12-17, and Thursday Night Football on Prime Video is Weeks 13-17.
Obviously, we’re in Week 11, so MNF and TNF are not options, and they cannot switch TNF games without a 21-day notice. It’s also why a complete trash heap of a matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders on Monday Night Football is staying in its slot.
Sunday Night Football’s game this weekend is the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles, which is a huge clash in the NFC between division leaders. There is zero chance that game is getting flexed out.
No double prime time divisional matchups anymore
A fairly recent NFL change is that divisional matchups cannot both be on prime time. The Rams-Seahawks game in Week 16 on TNF means that the corresponding Seahawks-Rams cannot also go to SNF, MNF, or TNF. This is to protect CBS and FOX from being shut out of their typical marquee matchups.
Why can’t Seahawks vs. Rams move to the late CBS doubleheader slot?
I suppose it could have; CBS carried Seahawks vs. Cardinals in Seattle while the Glendale matchup was on TNF. However, the lead CBS game is the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos in Denver, so all that moving Seahawks at Rams would accomplish is putting it on another network in which they would get second billing anyway.
This is purely happenstance and there’s nothing the NFL can do about it. The fact that this game was a late singleheader FOX kickoff in the first place tells you the league didn’t think Seahawks vs. Rams in Week 11 would carry such magnitude; I suspect primarily because of how the Seahawks were viewed.
We’ll see you at 1:05 pm on FOX!
