After the thrill ride that is a Sunday afternoon full of NFL action, there may not be a better way to close things out than Sunday Night Football. Often one of the best games of the week in the National Football League, Sunday Night Football is an event that football fans may enjoy more than any other regular-season contest on a weekly basis. In this guide to Sunday Night Football, find out why Sunday Night Football is as popular as it is and the biggest positives to this weekly staple.
Sunday Night Football (SNF) Picks
Our SNF picks and predictions are for all matches on Sunday. We provide SNF picks straight up (moneyline), Sunday night football against the spread picks, as well as totals. For each SNF match you’ll be able to see a detailed breakdown of the stats and our best bets for the day as well.
What is Sunday Night Football?
Sunday Night Football is the final game on the NFL schedule each Sunday throughout the regular season. Unlike the afternoon game windows on Sundays, which feature several games at the same time, Sunday Night Football is on television all by itself. And with football fans able to give this game their undivided attention each week, Sunday Night Football rarely disappoints them.
Why is Sunday Night Football so popular?
The biggest reason that Sunday Night Football is so popular is the fact that it often features one of the best games on the NFL schedule each week. The television contract for Sunday Night Football allows them to pick the majority of the best games throughout the season. So, not only does Sunday Night Football have a time slot that makes it feel important, but it also features two teams that are important in most instances.
As if a favorable pre-season game selection wasn’t enough, Sunday Night Football also has the benefit of flex scheduling at its disposal. Flex scheduling allows the broadcast network of Sunday Night Football to swap out the originally scheduled game for a superior contest late in the season. This all but guarantees excitement on Sunday nights during the second half of the season.
Pros and Cons of Sunday Night Football
Pros
The most prominent positive to Sunday Night Football is the fact that it almost always has implications on the playoff races in the NFL. This is especially true in the final weeks of the season, where the flex scheduling agreement results almost exclusively in matchups featuring teams that have a shot at the playoffs.
Another huge plus to Sunday Night Football is the fact that the teams who play in it get to play on a national stage. But they get to play on a national stage without having to deal with the same scheduling issues that teams face when playing on Thursdays or Mondays. Instead of entering a game on short rest, Sunday Night Football participants get to stay in their normal weekly routines.
Cons
There aren’t many, if any, negatives to Sunday Night Football. But it does have the potential to be a victim of its own place within the NFL schedule. After a day full of NFL games, including the always chaotic ending to the 1 pm Eastern slate of games, Sunday Night Football does have the potential to feel underwhelming if the game is a blowout and there are no other games to pay attention to.