NFL Schedule 2020: Breaking down the primetime games

Thursday Night Football grade: B-

The slate of games on Thursday night is simply average at best, which is a result of the limitations placed on scheduling the package. Travel restrictions often limit good matchups, so the fact we’re getting Packers-49ers on a Thursday is a big plus.

The NFL does also deserve some points for maximizing its post-Thanksgiving week again with the Cowboys and Ravens, a marquee matchup that could easily anchor a doubleheader Sunday. Creative scheduling was also involved in getting Patriots-Rams as a Thursday night game in December, since New England plays in L.A. against the Chargers in Week 13, with the team staying in California between games.

That bit of ingenuity helps save the package from the C range, but the poor matchups and often inferior quality of football dings the Thursday night games again. The NFL will keep putting games on because America’s appetite for football can never be satisfied, but the quality of the matchups never meets the hype.

Thursday Night Football is always the worst of the three prime-time packages, but it makes sense that the NFL is doing its best to spice it up. Hopefully these tweaks end up delivering a better product than fans have gotten in recent years.