 }})
Yahoo! Sports - News, Scores, Standings, Rumors
Guest
How many times will the New Orleans Saints get to play under the bright lights in 2025? The NFL schedule release is nearly upon us, and we're wondering if the Saints will get more prime-time night games in front of a national audience. They had just three of them in each of the last three years, going 1-8, but the uncertainty in an unproven coach and rookie quarterback may be a turnoff.
All of those games have been played on Monday or Thursday nights, too. The Saints have not been featured on Sunday Night Football since they beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-0 back in 2021, setting a record for the lowest final score in the weekly feature since 2009. Ironically, the Saints also set the record for the most points scored on SNF back in 2011 when they blew out the Indianapolis Colts 62-7.
Last year, just one team was shut out of prime time altogether: the Carolina Panthers (who went 5-12). Four others each had a single prime-time feature and none of them finished with a record over .500, with the Tennessee Titans going 3-14. Five teams drew two prime time games each, with mixed results: the Washington Commanders (12-5) and Minnesota Vikings (14-3) deserved more attention, while the wheels fell off for the Las Vegas Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars (who both went 4-13). Two national broadcasts feels right for a Denver Broncos squad led by a rookie quarterback that ended up going 10-7.
Maybe that's the territory the Saints fall in. At the same time, which game on their schedule looks like a hot ticket? One of their rivalry games with the Atlanta Falcons, probably, but outside of that? Are we getting amped up for road games with the Buffalo Bills (who throttled the Saints 31-6 just a few years ago)? They got spanked by the Los Angeles Rams in their last game at SoFi Stadium and their last road game with the Seattle Seahawks was a boring 13-10 finish. It's been a long time since the Saints traveled to play the Miami Dolphins in Florida (2009, if you can believe it). Neither of those matchups screams must-see. As for home opponents, the shine has come off the San Francisco 49ers, but maybe Kyler Murray is a strong enough draw to feature the Arizona Cardinals in a hostile environment on a Thursday night.
If you're curious, here's how many prime-time games each team was assigned when the NFL schedule released last year (courtesy of CBS Sports):
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: NFL schedule release: How many prime-time games will Saints get?
Continue reading...
All of those games have been played on Monday or Thursday nights, too. The Saints have not been featured on Sunday Night Football since they beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-0 back in 2021, setting a record for the lowest final score in the weekly feature since 2009. Ironically, the Saints also set the record for the most points scored on SNF back in 2011 when they blew out the Indianapolis Colts 62-7.
Last year, just one team was shut out of prime time altogether: the Carolina Panthers (who went 5-12). Four others each had a single prime-time feature and none of them finished with a record over .500, with the Tennessee Titans going 3-14. Five teams drew two prime time games each, with mixed results: the Washington Commanders (12-5) and Minnesota Vikings (14-3) deserved more attention, while the wheels fell off for the Las Vegas Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars (who both went 4-13). Two national broadcasts feels right for a Denver Broncos squad led by a rookie quarterback that ended up going 10-7.
Maybe that's the territory the Saints fall in. At the same time, which game on their schedule looks like a hot ticket? One of their rivalry games with the Atlanta Falcons, probably, but outside of that? Are we getting amped up for road games with the Buffalo Bills (who throttled the Saints 31-6 just a few years ago)? They got spanked by the Los Angeles Rams in their last game at SoFi Stadium and their last road game with the Seattle Seahawks was a boring 13-10 finish. It's been a long time since the Saints traveled to play the Miami Dolphins in Florida (2009, if you can believe it). Neither of those matchups screams must-see. As for home opponents, the shine has come off the San Francisco 49ers, but maybe Kyler Murray is a strong enough draw to feature the Arizona Cardinals in a hostile environment on a Thursday night.
If you're curious, here's how many prime-time games each team was assigned when the NFL schedule released last year (courtesy of CBS Sports):
| Teams | Number of prime-time games (2024) |
|---|---|
| Jets, 49ers, Cowboys | 6 |
| Chiefs, Bills, Packers, Lions, Bengals, Ravens, Eagles, Dolphins, Rams | 5 |
| Texans, Steelers, Buccaneers, Seahawks, Falcons, Browns | 4 |
| Giants, Bears, Chargers, Saints | 3 |
| Vikings, Raiders, Commanders, Broncos, Jaguars | 2 |
| Colts, Patriots, Cardinals, Titans | 1 |
| Panthers | 0 |
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: NFL schedule release: How many prime-time games will Saints get?
Continue reading...