NFL schedule could thrive in a digital streaming smorgasboard

"Good evening everybody and welcome to YouTube's Mooooonday Night Fooooootball, I'm Ryan Seacrest, and alongside me is Jason Nash ..."

Hey, don't laugh, this might be the future.

I just listened to The Ringer's Bill Simmons and Bryan Curtis talk about ways NFL games could hit different digital platforms for specific fan bases, and the idea has stuck. Different people, different needs. (Wasn't that an eighties sitcom?) 

Anyway, seems like a good idea (another eighties sitcom, surely!). 

For example, if you're into betting, Amazon Prime's take on 'Game Of The Week' could offer degenerate gambler, Cousin Sal giving up worthwhile prop bets, as Simmons suggested on his podcast.

Listen, I'd go a step further, as many NFL games are now beamed around the globe and with broadcast teams tailored to specific audiences. Consider ESPN's Crocodile Dundee-style "g'days" before the last Super Bowl, an Aussie-centric broadcast, for better or worse, featuring Steve Levy, Louis Riddick and Brian Griese.

It was fine. The trio was professional, led by Levy doing his syrupy-SportsCenter best, and even tapped into Australian lingo. This all landed ... sort of ... like a Chris Rock bit on a mainstream college campus. 

After the game's halftime show, Levy even announced that "Super Bowl 55 is presented by Macca's." Look, it was all at once weird, oddly accurate, and possibly not needed, I thought, as I slowly munched on my Macca's burger. 

Still, ESPN or one of the incumbent platforms like YouTube could continue catering to the Aussie fans through its regular season selections. It's great that countries like Australia, New Zealand and UK get all the usual big games from the major broadcasters - everybody wants Nantz and Romo, and who doesn't love Ian Eagle? Glitzy graphics and loud intro songs by sparkly starlets - the world is onboard. (It's half the reason the NFL appeals to new markets!)

But for the backlot-three-people-in-the-stands-cellar-dweller-scraps, there's an opportunity to  indulge newer fan groups. There's room for more, dare we say, Big Macs.

Aussies also tend to gather in pubs around big market teams and popular brands, including the New York Giants, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams, and yes, of course, the Sydney - I mean, San Francisco 49ers. 

Sure, everyone wants to see the Eagles take on the Cowboys in the marquee game, but some countries would surely love a dusty 49ers - Rams September tilt just as much. 

Similarly, if Twitter aired a Pats versus Raiders Sunday afternoon fiasco, not only would gamblers across the Asia-Pacific trip over their digital wallets, but so to would anyone who bought a Tom Brady jersey on his last family holiday to Vegas-via-LA-Austin-and-Aspen. 

NFL schedulers need a flux capacitor

Nobody promotes its product ahead of time like the NFL.

The 2012 regular season NFL schedule was released this week, with the first kick-off featuring the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants on Thursday, September 5. The last time somebody advertised this far in advance, Hollywood ended up with actors much older than their characters - but because it was a movie about a time travelling DeLorean nobody cared.

It's surely an arduous decision locking in the season's initial game, finding the right balance of nationwide appeal, competitiveness, rivalry, and high-caliber cheerleaders. In the current instance, the Giants are the champs, and presumably the Cowboys are in the, er, best position to topple the champs? Sure, there's a rivalry here but who are we kidding? I'd rather see Calvin take on Hobbs on opening night.

If we run down the first weekend schedule, a couple of other games are decidedly more enticing. For a start, 49ers - Packers, a renewed rivalry with cheese melting potency, will be a cracker, with Aaron Rodgers battling the Niners stout defense, and Alex Smith vying for real credibility following a strong playoffs. Or how about Cam Newton slinging deep balls and wielding spin moves against Josh Freeman and the Bucs? That'll be more compelling than Tony Romo hitting the deck and shoving his shoulder pads back under his jersey every second play.

The Monday nighters feature sexier rivalries than long-legged label touters on the red carpet, despite the fact that both Carson Palmer and Phil Rivers have been about as effective lately as Bobby Valentine in the Red Sox clubhouse. Fried chicken and beer don't look so bad now, right?

Peyton Manning's Broncos play Big Ben's Steelers on the Sunday night, which might even give Megan's party for Don on Mad Men a run for its money, as the best ways to cap off a weekend. Congratulations to the league on that one.


Looking down the list, there are some other regional contests that will appeal to an excitable few, like the Jets and Bills, or the Rams and Detroit - the latter, especially, feels like a matinee must-see. You be the judge.

Sunday, Sept. 9

Colts at Bears, 1 p.m. ET
Jaguars at Vikings, 1 p.m. ET
Bills at Jets, 1 p.m. ET
Dolphins at Texans, 1 p.m. ET
Patriots at Titans, 1 p.m. ET
Rams at Lions, 1 p.m. ET
Redskins at Saints, 1 p.m. ET
Eagles at Browns, 1 p.m. ET
Falcons at Chiefs, 1 p.m. ET
49ers at Packers, 4:15 p.m. ET
Seahawks at Cardinals, 4:15 p.m. ET
Panthers at Buccaneers, 4:15 p.m. ET
Steelers at Broncos, 8:20 p.m. ET

Monday, Sept. 10

Bengals at Ravens, 7 p.m. ET
Chargers at Raiders, 10:15 p.m. ET