Fansided

NFL: 5 worst games of the ‘Thursday Night Football’ era

By Bryce Olin

Sep 25, 2014; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) sits on the bench during the fourth quarter against the New York Giants at FedEx Field. The Giants won 45-14. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 25, 2014; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) sits on the bench during the fourth quarter against the New York Giants at FedEx Field. The Giants won 45-14. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 25, 2014; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) sits on the bench during the fourth quarter against the New York Giants at FedEx Field. The Giants won 45-14. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 25, 2014; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) sits on the bench during the fourth quarter against the New York Giants at FedEx Field. The Giants won 45-14. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

Thursday Night Football is an abomination, but compared to all the concussions and other serious injuries and domestic violence scandal overwhelming the NFL right now, TNF doesn’t even make a blip on the radar.

In 2006, the NFL got the go-ahead to air NFL games on Thursday night in an effort to boost game ratings. Eight years later, the idea is obviously one of the worst scheduling mistakes in professional sports. In my mind, it ranks second behind ESPN neglecting to air Derek Jeter’s final game at Yankee Stadium.

Seriously, ESPN? Whoever made that decision should be fired immediately, no excuses.

From a business perspective, I understand why the NFL would want to play another night of the week. Sunday and Monday night both kill in ratings week after week. Why wouldn’t Thursday? It’s not like Thursday is a bad day for football. It’s just that nothing says “We don’t care about our players” more than making them play on short rest in a game that forces players to smash each other on a weekly basis.

Because of the short rest and lack of preparation, often TNF is largely underwhelming. Through the first three weeks of TNF this season, the average margin of victory is 31.0 points. Thanks for the really competitive football, NFL.

In honor of some of the worst football I’ve seen, I’ve put together the rankings of the five worst TNF games since 2006.

Enjoy!

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