National media outlet names 5 worst NFL prime time matchups in 2023; Chiefs game lands on list
The Kansas City Chiefs lead the NFL with six prime-time games in 2023. Kansas City joins the Los Angeles Chargers, Buffalo Bills, and Dallas Cowboys as the only teams with six prime-time games this upcoming season. After the NFL schedule was released last week, The Athletic's Mike Jones broke down the entire slate. As part of […]
The Kansas City Chiefs lead the NFL with six prime-time games in 2023.
Kansas City joins the Los Angeles Chargers, Buffalo Bills, and Dallas Cowboys as the only teams with six prime-time games this upcoming season.
After the NFL schedule was released last week, The Athletic's Mike Jones broke down the entire slate.
As part of his breakdown, Jones pointed out the five "worst prime-time matchups".
And surprisingly, a Chiefs game made the list.
Here are the five games that Jones singled out as the worst prime-time games in 2023:
- Detroit Lions @ Kansas City Chiefs — Monday Night Football — Week 1
- Pittsburgh Steelers @ Las Vegas Raiders — Sunday Night Football — Week 3
- Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Monday Night Football — Week 3
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Buffalo Bills — Thursday Night Football — Week 8
- Minnesota Vikings @ Denver Broncos — Sunday Night Football — Week 11
From The Athletic: Night games are supposed to be showdowns of the best of the best, but the schedule-makers appear to have some potential blunders on tap. Lions-Chiefs could wind up being rather lopsided in favor of Kansas City. Week 3, it’s the Steelers at the Raiders, which seems like a Sunday night snoozer. The next evening, the Eagles visit the Bucs. And in Week 8, it’s the Bucs at the Bills on Thursday night. Did the NFL forget that Tom Brady retired? Another seemingly undesirable prime-time pairing: Vikings at Broncos in Week 11.
Jones is pretty spot-on with his picks with the exception of the Chiefs vs Lions matchup. Sure, that game has the potential to get out of hand, but with it being Week One, I'd expect Detroit to give the Chiefs a tougher game than many folks are expecting. Kansas City should still win by double digits, but it could be an interesting matchup into the fourth quarter.
As for the other matchups? I get choosing some games that don't seem attractive right now. There are always a few teams that end up having better seasons than expected and it's nice for the sport when some of those teams end up in prime-time. Perhaps that's the case with the Broncos under Sean Payton this fall. Or maybe the Steelers pick up where they left off in 2022 and get off to a quick start.
It's the featuring of the Bucs that's a bit confusing. On paper, Tampa Bay is shaping up to be one of the worst teams in the league in 2023. And there's little hope that they'll surprise anyone and have a great season (even with them playing in the dreadful NFC South — a division that probably won't deserve a playoff team in 2023). I'm not sure why the NFL wasted a Monday night game on the Bucs.
Maybe a few of these games will end up being wildly entertaining. I'm sure that's what the NFL is counting on, but there were definitely some questionable primetime decisions made by the league. We'll see this fall if those decisions turned out to be wise.
