NFL Announced Changes To Week 16 Primetime Schedule

The NFL is making a crucial change to its primetime scheduling for Week 16. As the season is now in full swing and we have a better understanding of where teams are at, the league is making changes to ensure that the primetime games are the most exciting.

While there were teams that were projected to be good and exciting for primetime games, we now know that many of them have fallen off. So the league made a change to make sure the better teams would get more primetime games.

NFL Makes Key Change For Primetime Game

Sep 22, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh leads his team onto the field to play the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

On Friday, the league announced that there would be a change for the Week 16 Thursday Night Football game. The game was supposed to feature a matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns on Prime Video, but that is no longer the case.

Both of those teams had high hopes before the season, and while the Bengals are still somewhat in the mix to make the postseason, both teams will probably miss the playoffs. Both teams have a below .500 record and that won’t make for the best storyline.

Th league announced that they will be switching that game, to a much more crucial matchup, especially for the playoffs. They switched the game to an AFC West matchup between the Denver Broncos and the Los Angeles Chargers.

The first Thursday night flex: The Week 16 Denver Broncos at Los Angeles Chargers game will move to Thursday Night Football on Prime Video while the Cleveland Browns at Cincinnati Bengals matchup will be played Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on FOX.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 22, 2024

This move makes sense all around, as the Browns just played a Thursday night game, and playing another one in such as short period of time would not be healthy for those players. The Browns are also way out of playoff contention, and even though the Bengals are always exciting football, that game would not bring the same viewership and hype as the AFC West matchup.

The Bengals have been losing games left and right this season, and while Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase have been the best at their positions this season, they have not been able to get wins down the stretch of games. Their 4-7 record places them in a dire position, and they will need to win out to think about the playoffs.

The Chargers and Broncos have both been playing amazing this season and they are both right in the playoffs mix. So this game may knock one of those teams out of the postseason which makes for an incredible primetime matchup.

This game also features two great coaches and two young stars at quarterback. So good for the league, that they made this change and will give the fans a much better product for Thursday.