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The NFL is planning its schedule for the 2018 season and the New England Patriots are the hottest ticket- as they are every season. According to Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand, “top executives from ESPN, Fox Sports and NBC Sports” met with the NFL during the Super Bowl to make their cases for the upcoming season.
The Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, and Green Bay Packers were in the highest demand as they are every season, while the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles drew interest, too.
According to Ourand, “what made this year’s meetings different were the number of new teams that piqued interest, like the Los Angeles Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers with newly signed quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.”
Get’m, Jimmy!
Ourand believes that NBC will try to “max out on the number of times” the Patriots play on Sunday Night Football and that ESPN will host more divisional games on Monday Night Football.
And if you’re worried about the Patriots playing on Thanksgiving, don’t worry- Ourand reports that both “CBS and the NFL consider the Patriots to be too strong” to face the Detroit Lions on Turkey Day. Thank goodness.