The NFL schedule always comes with anticipated twists and turns as the league tries to find new ways to dominate with its calculated approach for putting the right games at the right times.
The best-laid plans can lead to some weird storylines involving teams and players. The 2023 slate is no different. Here are some of the most notable quirks now that Weeks 1-18 are set for the upcoming regular season:
MORE: Best games on the 2023 NFL schedule for all 32 teams
Cowboys are still America's Prime-Time Team
Dallas hasn't won the Super Bowl in 27 seasons, but it still has as many marquee night games as Super Bowl 57 champion Kansas City. Six of the Cowboys' 17 matchups will be played after 8 p.m. ET, representing more than 35 percent of the schedule.
The Cowboys and Chiefs are also are matched by the Bills and Chargers with a half-dozen prime-time games. Dallas will be on NBC three times for "Sunday Night Football" (Giants, 49ers and Eagles) and once on Amazon Prime Video for "Thursday Night Football" (Seahawks). They also play on a Monday night (Chargers) and a Saturday night (Lions) for ESPN.
The league is looking out for Dak Prescott with all those night games. He has a .667 winning percentage at night vs. .525 in the 4 p.m. ET window. Consider then another eight of the Cowboys games are 4:25/4:30 starts. The Cowboys have only two 1 p.m. ET games, in Week 9 vs. the Rams and Week 11 at the Panthers. Prescott's winning percentage in such games, given it's usually again weak opponents, is .740.
To further stamp their big-market status, the Cowboys also appropriately play both teams from both New York and Los Angeles.
Chargers are shockingly under the spotlight, too
Starting with the Kellen Moore revenge game vs. Dallas, the better of Los Angeles' two NFL teams also will appear in the aforementioned six prime-time games, non before Week 6.
It's odd NBC picked Chargers vs. Bears for "Sunday Night Football" in Week 8, even though a battle between the QB Justins (Herbert and Fields) might be fun. They also are an opponent for one of Aaron Rodgers' Jets' five night games on ESPN's "Monday Night Football" in Week 9.
The Chargers-Ravens seems forced again on "SNF" in Week 12. L.A. also gets to appear on "Thursday Night Football" vs. the Raiders in Week 15 and on a special Peacock game vs. the Bills in Week 16. However you look at it, their popularity for ratings purposes pales vs. the other three teams with six prime-time games.
MORE: Ranking the NFL's 5 best and worst prime-time games in 2023
Colts, Falcons and Texans don't have enough star power
If you wanted to see Anthony Richardson, Bijan Robinson or C.J. Stroud in a nationally televised game, you're out of luck. The rookies come in as potential instant stars for their pro teams, but with Peyton Manning, Michael Vick and J.J. Watt all the rearview mirror, all three domed teams need to settle for pretending they are under the lights when playing at home.
Chiefs got all their biggest games at "home" — and late, too
Kansas City can get home-field advantage over their biggest threats in the AFC playoffs by simply using their home-field advantage against those same teams during the regular season. After "hosting" Miami in London in Week 9, the Chiefs get a bye before their Week 11 Super Bowl rematch with the Eagles at Arrowhead. The Bills and Bengals also play in KC, in Weeks 14 and 17.
MORE: Ranking the NFL's rookie QB matchups in 2023
Bryce Young is in total control of the Offensive Rookie of the Year race
The Panthers' No. 1 overall pick at quarterback is not the favorite to win OROY. But he can make it easier by outplaying all his biggest challengers. Playing in the NFC South, he'll go head-to-head with the favorite — the Falcons' Robinson, twice. Also in the NFC, Carolina faces Seattle (Jaxon Smith-Njigba), Detroit (Jahmyr Gibbs) and Minnesota (Jordan Addison).
Wait, there's more. Young and the Panthers also face all of the AFC South, so hopefully, one will get to see him go head-to-head with Richardson, Stroud and Will Levis (Titans), the three QBs drafted behind him. Should Young start out of the gate for the Panthers, he can prove himself quickly to be the true best player in the class totally on the field.
Jaguars go to London twice in a row with no bye for a while
These NFL international games are about to jump the shark. First, the league loved the Munich game between the Buccaneers and Seahawks so much, it decided to double up in Germany with two Frankfurt games.
Jacksonville, however, makes history as the first team to play back-to-back games in the UK. The Jaguars get a favorable "home" game vs. the Falcons in Week 4 in the Calvin Ridley "revenge game". The degree of overseas difficulty is raised big time when the Jaguars "travel" to face the Bills in Week 5.
Somehow, after the Jaguars' body clocks get throw off for consecutive games, they have to turn around and play the Colts in Jacksonville for a 1 p.m. Sunday kickoff in Week 6. They also have to play at the Saints on Thursday in Week 7 and have a road trap vs. the Steelers in Week 8 before finally getting the bye in Week 9.
MORE: Biggest winners & losers from the 2023 NFL schedule
Tyreek Hill, Davante Adams, Marquise Brown and D.J. Moore all can get revenge
Hill is already yapping plenty ahead of his Dolphins facing the Chiefs in London in Week 9. But he's not the only wide receiver who got moved in a big trade trying to burn his former team. While A.J. Brown got to rip the Titans in Philadelphia last season, Adams will try to do the same in Las Vegas in Week 5, when the Raiders host the Packers.
Brown wasn't thrilled about being moved away from the Ravens and Lamar Jackson. He will get his shot at home for the Cardinals in Week 8. Moore, who the Panthers had to give up to draft Young, will suit up for the Bears in Soldier Field vs. Carolina in Week 10.
Bye-mageddons, beware!
Why does the NFL insist on doing this to fantasy football players? There's no reason for six teams to be off on the same week in a 32-team league over 18 weeks, let alone two. But here we go again with the permutations and combinatorics gods not being with us.
The first comes in Week 7, when the Panthers, Bengals, Cowboys, Texans, Jets and Titans won't take the field. And just in time for a critical week before the fantasy football playoffs, the Ravens, Bills, Bears, Raiders, Vikings, Giants all won't be in action in Week 13.
Tuesday and Wednesday, you're next
With the NFL playing on Black Friday after a Thanksgiving Thursday tripleheader, the league is now playing games on five days of the week in 2023. The only surprise is there's no Boxing Day game (in London, of course) on the Tuesday after the Christmas three-game Monday slate, too. What's stopping Amazon Prime Video, then, from having a "Thursday Night Football" special on Wednesday sometime soon, too?
