The 2014 NFL schedule will be released Wednesday night, with all the pomp and circumstance befitting the occasion.
The NFL announced Tuesday that the 2014 regular season schedule will be released at 8 PM ET Wednesday night, accompanied by a three-hour studio show on NFL Network and a more restrained two-hour show on ESPN2.
The biggest story heading into the schedule release is that CBS will air the first half of the Thursday Night Football schedule. While the Thursday night schedule has been quite weak over the years, Sports Business Journal reported earlier this month that CBS is expected to have a strong slate for its eight Thursday games (which will be simulcast on NFL Network) — “much stronger than ESPN’s ‘Monday Night Football’ package” (SBD, 4/7).
According to the report, there is expected to be a “stark quality difference between” the first half of the package on CBS and NFL Network and the second half on NFL Network alone. Considering that the NFL requires each team get a Thursday night game, that could lead to some brutal match-ups late in the season on NFL Network, which concludes its coverage with a Saturday night doubleheader in Week 16.
A few other bits and pieces about the schedule are already known. The season will open in Seattle, home to the defending champion Seahawks (perhaps in a Super Bowl rematch against the Broncos). The Falcons and Lions will play a 9:30 AM ET game from London on October 26. Finally, with the new NFL TV deal officially kicking in this season, the playoffs will include a Wild Card game on ESPN and a Divisional Round game on NBC.
(Some info from NFL Communications, Sports Business Journal)
