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NFL explains reason for Bears’ odd division scheduling quirks, three-game road trip originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Bears’ 2024 schedule arrived Wednesday and had a few notable quirks, including that the Bears do not play a divisional game until Week 11 against the Green Bay Packers.
Six of the Bears’ final eight games are against NFC North opponents. Meanwhile, the other three teams in the division each play two NFC North games prior to Week 11. But the Bears aren’t alone in this strange division scheduling, as the Pittsburgh Steelers also don’t play a divisional game until Week 11.
On Thursday, NFL Vice President of Broadcast Planning Mike North discussed why the Bears’ schedule came with the unusual divisional slate.
“We certainly didn’t set out to not have any division games [in the early part of the season],” North said on a video conference call with reporters. “It feels like a college basketball schedule, the nonconference games first. It wasn’t intentional, but also it wasn’t necessarily something that we looked at and thought was unfair.”
North noted that the NFL has always preferred to have divisional games late in the season to maximize the drama.
“There is a legacy from the [former senior vice president of broadcasting and media operations] Howard Katz years of running the scheduling process: It’s division games late in the season. It’s always something we’re looking for, not forcing it in other than Week 18. More division games late in the season usually means fewer teams have clinched playoff spots.”
North said the league will probably look at having such an extreme division schedule next season.
Charlotte Carey, the NFL’s Director of Broadcasting, noted on “Up and Adams” that because both the AFC and NFC North are such exciting and heavily competitive divisions, the NFL was OK with having the back part of the schedule loaded with those games.
Another oddity in the Bears’ schedule occurs in Weeks 10-15 when they play…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-explains-reason-bears-odd-161351684.html
Author : NBC Sports Chicago
Publish date : 2024-05-17 16:13:51
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