Why Can’t We Just Flex The Sunday Nighter Instead?

This is an utter traveshamockery of NFL TV scheduling, and I don’t understand why Lord Rog doesn’t step in and force NBC, CBS, and Fox to flex the Patriots-Cowboys showdown to Sunday night for the good of the game. It would be a hell of a lot better than the Saints-Seahawks Sunday nighter that I’ll be live-blogging.

Why am I bitching? Because I will be stuck viewing the Raiders take on the Chargers at 1 PM on Sunday afternoon when the rest of the goddamn country is watching Pats-Cowboys. California, of course, is forced to miss the game due to territorial pissings, even though there are plenty of people throughout the damn state who don’t give a shit about either the Cryptkeeper’s playthings or the Norv-led Bolts.

It’s the best game of the week. It may be one of the better games of the season. And some of the biggest media viewing markets in the country won’t get to watch it. NBC, you coughed up the money for the rights on Sunday night and we get another crap NFC match-up as a result. When Week 6 rolls around, that’s when the flex needs to kick in. There’s no sense of NE-Dallas not being a national game right now. Yes, it will mean Al and John won’t know whose knob to slobber — Brady or Romo, Brady or Romo? — but that would be endlessly better than not getting to hear Jim Nantz and Phil Simms do it. (At least SopCast is still working — for now.)

Of course, it could always be worse. At least Oakland-SD will be competitive and maybe interesting offensively. Those of you dwelling in Arizona or in the Carolinas get stuck with the Panthers-Cardinals old-off, where there are rumors that Vinny Testaverde might start less than a week after he’s signed.

(Hm. Sounds like Brooks is as huffy about it as I am.)