More eyes, more attention, more opportunities for football fans the world over to try to learn the proper pronunciation of the name Tuipulotu. (Its T-OO-EE-p-uu-l-aw-t-oo.) And more cars on the road trying to navigate alongside weekday commuters, holiday shoppers, tourists, and students on a Thursday in Los Angeles.
The NFL announced today that “Thursday Night Football” will be flexed into a better matchup for the first time, moving the Chargers Week 16 matchup at Sofi Stadium against the Denver Broncos into prime time on Dec. 19.
Originally scheduled for Sunday afternoon, Dec. 22, the two teams are anticipated to be battling for one of the AFC's seven playoff spots when they will kick off Week 16 exclusively on Amazon Prime.
Thursday night football games have become a polarizing issue for NFL players who resent being forced to play on shortened rest.
Have anyone ever seen Joey Bosa on the Monday after a game out dancing in Hollywood? No, you haven't because the man cannot walk pain-free after being put through the threshing machine that his profession demands on Sundays.
I t doesn't matter if its salsa, reggaeton, house, or drill. Even the biggest drag events are all passed over by Bosa during the season, not because he can't feel the rhythm, but because sometimes it hurts so much that he can't even lie on his back and sleep.
The fact that the league has flexed the Chargers into prime time for the second time this season is evidence of how much success the new front office and coaching staff have already achieved before Thanksgiving. The Chargers are 7-4 and the top wildcard team at the moment and will play meaningful games in the final weeks of the season which stands to raise the profile of both the players and the staff.
A positive, right?
A player's first thought after the truncated recovery time from the previous game should be about the increased likelihood of sustaining a new injury. Though slight, the frequency of injuries does quantifiably increase in Thursday night games.
But to compete at this level most players have cultivated a mindset of invincibility and would never acknowledge any anxiety about sustaining an injury before it happens. That is headspace, and idle time, best left to the fans.
Coaches who do not like the idea of having their preparation time shortened will never complain publicly considering both teams are given the same amount of time to prepare.
The inverse deduction should also be considered. Added prep time benefits the teams who play on Thursday night who should have a strategic advantage the following week, considering the three extra days to prepare for an opponent who played their game on a Sunday.
Our populous city ranks third worst nationally in rush hour commutes, behind only New York and Chicago.
The NFL can’t force teams to play two Thursday night games on the road, meaning Denver approved of the rescheduling. The possible logic here is that they preferred the extra time to prepare for their game the following week against the Bengals.
As divisional rivals who have already played once this season ( a 23-16 Chargers win in Denver), installing a game plan for the Chargers is more manageable based on familiarity. Though I doubt Jim Harbaugh will interpret the decision to his team in that same perspective. He should use it as a slight and undoubtedly will.
The Broncos are looking past us.
Thursday games are not going away anytime soon. They are much too profitable to all parties involved. Well, maybe not all parties.
My tailgating friends stand to lose a day, or two, of work and lots of sleep, but that noise you hear is the tiniest of violins playing the saddest of melodies.
You should never feel bad for someone who owns a yacht.
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