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Some people wonder why the Jets got six primetime games against the 49ers, Patriots, Bills, Steelers, Texans and Colts.
You know what, if I were the NFL, I might have given them seven.
The Jets could be rating’s gold – a polarizing future Hall-of-Fame QB, and they also play in the New York, the #1 media market. That is a magical combination for TV ratings.
And another season the Jets being on six primetime games make sense is something I got into a little yesterday.
So many NFL teams have dubious QB situations.
Bad quarterbacks make for bad television.
Yes, the NFL is a popular league. Yes, the league gets great ratings.
But right now, there is a dearth of top-shelf quarterbacks, and let’s not get ahead ourselves and act like just because there were six quarterbacks picked in the first round of the 2024 draft, that is going to solve the problems.
We will see how these six quarterbacks turn out, and none are slam dunks to be franchise quarterbacks. None of them, and you could argue a few were draft reaches.
“I wouldn’t [pick] him in the first round, and there’s a bunch of things that bother me,” said former NFL RB Merrill Hoge, who breaks down a lot of tape. “He’s extremely inconsistent. His accuracy, his processing are inconsistent. He’s not extremely athletic.”
Maye was picked third overall by New England.
When you have two teams facing off with suspect quarterbacks, it can be unwatchable football.
One game last year that is a perfect example was an Atlanta Falcons-Carolina Panthers game, featuring Desmond Ridder against Bryce Young. It was not must-see TV.
There were too many games like that last year, matchups between pedestrian or substandard quarterbacks. That is tough to watch on TV (or in person). I’m not saying Young is always going to be pedestrian or substandard, but he was last year. We will see if he can take the next step.
So putting Rodgers on six primetime games makes perfect sense. So does putting Buffalo and QB Josh Allen on five times. So does putting Kansas City and QB Patrick Mahomes on five times as well.
And putting these rookie quarterbacks on primetime games, no matter how much buzz there is right now about them, is risky business. For every C.J. Stroud who does okay as a rookie QB, most of the others, to borrow a Bill Parcells quote, “are like a ball in the weeds – lost.”
And because the league is devoid of an ideal number of elite quarterbacks, you need to put Baltimore and QB Lamar Jackson on five times.
People talk about how tough the beginning of the Jets schedule is, starting on Monday night football in San Francisco, and then having to travel to Tennessee in Week Two, and then turn around for their home opener on Thursday Night Football game against New England.
It’s not as tough as it seems.
Why?
Because Tennessee and New England, aren’t likely to be very good, and the NFL knows that, even though they would never say it publicly. Both team’s quarterback situations aren’t great right now, even if the Patriots sit Maye for Jacoby Brissett this year.
So while on paper, the Jets early schedule looks tough based on the travel in the first two weeks, and then a short turnaround, how tough are those games in Week 2 and 3 really going to be?
So in fairness to the NFL’s broadcast partners, who pay billions in rights fees, making teams with marquis quarterbacks appear on primetime a lot, is the way to go.
May 16, 2024
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