When the 2011 NFL schedule was released last night, fans around the world immediately began to take a look at what their favorite team would be facing in the season. Did they luck out by getting all the hard teams at home? When do they play their rivals? How is my team going to get to at least a 11-5 record and get to the playoffs?
All these questions and more are being asked today. Another important one though that many people are seeking answers to is what are the most interesting games next season? Thankfully, we now know!
We all root for our favorite teams, but the NFL, like no other sport, attracts football fans that just want to see a great game between any two teams. Luckily, there are no shortage of games this year that have plenty of action with even more drama behind it.
Let's have a look as the 20 most exciting games for 2011.
20) Dallas Cowboys at Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Week 15. Saturday at 8 PM
This may not be the sexiest match-up you'll see on this list, but this could end up being a game that puts one team in the playoffs, and one team out of it. Tampa is coming off a hopeful 2010 season while the Cowboys are trying to avoid another disaster in 2011.
Two potentially potent offenses will be on display for this Saturday night late season showdown.
19) Atlanta Falcons at Chicago Bears. Week 1. 1 PM
Nothing like the two best teams of 2010 kicking off the new season eh?
Despite the success both teams had last year, a lot of questions surround both these teams. Many fans and analysts alike question whether these two squads are built for success or a flash in the pan. For one team, they'll kick off the season the best way they can. For the other, those questions of legitimacy will begin right after the final whistle.
18) Kansas City Chiefs at New England Patriots. Week 11. Monday at 8:30 PM
You often hear the phrase "teacher vs. student" in sports. With this game you don't see this with two individuals, instead, you see it with the way franchises are run. Ever since Chiefs General Manager Scott Pioli left New England, for KC, the Chiefs have tried to do things the Patriots way.
From signing Matt Cassel, to reuniting Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel back together, (Though Weis has since moved on to be offensive coordinator at the University of Florida) to the way the offense is run, the Chiefs have sough to become the midwest version of the Pats, and in their second year it worked wonders, returning to the playoffs for the first time in several years.
Now you have the student in KC, traveling to New England in a mid-season game of division winners. The Pats will surely be favored but we'll be able to see just how far the Chiefs have come and if they can beat the Patriots at their own game.
17) San Francisco 49'ers at Baltimore Ravens. Week 12 at 1 PM
This game will be making history as it will mark the first time two brothers coach against each other in an NFL game. After a very successful stint at Stanford, Jim Harbaugh joined his brother John in the NFL coaching ranks when he took over the 49'ers job from another former Chicago Bear, Mike Singletary.
While this game could also have playoff implications, there will be plenty of fans watching this merely for the "Harbaugh Bowl"
16) Green Bay Packers at New York Giants Week 13 at 4:15 PM
Considering how dire the outlook was regarding the Packers chances to make the playoffs last year, the team should be sending out thank you notes to several teams and players. One of them needs to go to the Giants who laid an egg against the Packers last year on Week 16. The loss helped get the Packers into the playoffs while the Giants essentially eliminated themselves.
The Giants will be seeking revenge when the two teams clash in New York in early December. With a core that still has playoff talent, the Giants will try to use this game to propel them towards the post season, instead of going out with a wimper like they have the past two seasons.
15) New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons. Week 16. Monday at 8:30 PM
One of the better series of games last year came between these NFC South rivals. With both teams seeking to contend again next year, you have to get excited for a game between these two teams so late in the season.
Their Week 16 clash very well could have a playoff spot on the line. The two teams also play on Week 10, but nothing can be bigger than a game of this magnitude on the last weekend of December.
14) Chicago Bears at Denver Broncos. Week 14 at 4:05 PM
While on paper this game doesn't offer a lot in terms of two quality opponents playing each other, the drama of this game will be at a fever pitch. He's loved, he's hated, but two years after being traded to Chicago, Jay Cutler is still a topic of discussion for Bronco fans.
Some feel he was unjustly treated by former coach Josh McDaniels, while others still curse the day he dare demand a trade out of their beloved city.
This will mark the second time Cutler goes to Denver, but that was a measly pre-season game in which he only took part in a few drives. This game will be on a late December evening with a raucous crowd jeering their former franchise quarterback.
The game could also spoil any hopes the Bears have of making the playoffs should they lose.
13) Dallas Cowboys at New England Patriots. Week 6 at 4:15 PM
When two of the NFL's premiere franchises face off against each other for the first time in four years, you're going to take notice. That's exactly the case here when the Cowboys travel up to Boston to take on the Patriots.
It'll be a very good test to see where the Cowboys stand as they try to rebound from their struggles of 2010. A win here could put the team right back on the map as a Super Bowl contender.
12) Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons. Week 5 at 8:30 PM
The arrival of the Green Bay Packers as a true Super Bowl contender came at the expense of the Atlanta Falcons in the Divisional playoff round, crushing the No. 1 seed 48-21. The Packers seemed to thrive on the Falcons home artificial turf. Will they do the same again?
The Falcons will be seeking to gain some sort of revenge when the two teams face off on Sunday Night football. The game could prove to be a big one as both teams will be playing in very tight divisions.
11) New York Giants at New England Patriots. Week 9 at 4:15 PM
A re-match of the Super Bowl that produced one of the more improbable upsets in recent sports history. The Giants won't have David Tyree to make Herculean efforts to help the Giants win this time, but they do have a roster with enough talent to give the Patriots issues.
A lot has happened since that Super Bowl that deprived the Patriots from NFL immortality. But you can bet the Patriots will still feel the wound from that game when they take on the G-Men.
10) New York Jets at Philadelphia Eagles. Week 15 at 4:15 PM
This game should be a fun one!
Michael Vick and his high flying offense taking on Rex Ryan's tough as nails defense. These are the type of games that make you glad for the interleague games the NFL provides fans every year. This game could very well put one team into the playoffs and keep the loser out of them, being that this game is taking place on Week 15.
It will be a true test to see if Vick can poke holes through the Jets D, or if the Ryan 3-4 will be too much for No. 7.
9) Chicago Bears at New Orleans Saints. Week 2 at 1:00 PM
The Bears start their season against the Falcons and then have to go to New Orleans in a Week 2 showdown. These two teams have been some of the most successful in the NFC over the past two years, and this game could very well be important for determining playoff seeding at the end of the season.
This game will be another great showdown between an elite quarterback in Drew Brees against a very strong Bears defense. The key to this game though might very well come down to if Jay Cutler can avoid the turnovers against the Saints opportunistic defense.
8) New England Patriots at Pittsburgh Steelers. Week 8 at 4:15 PM
Two of the best teams in the NFL over the past decade play each other yet again on Week 8 of the season. Given the success of these two teams, this game will more likely determine playoff seeding, but it doesn't take away from the fact that when these two teams play, quality football ensues.
7) New York Jets at Baltimore Ravens. Week 4 at 8:30 PM
Rex Ryan gets another crack at his former team when the Jets travel to Baltimore on Sunday night football. A lot of people got excited for last season's opening game between these two teams, but the Jets didn't show up for the game.
Don't expect that to happen this time around. These two teams have occupied the 5th and 6th seeds the past two years, so this game could again depend on who gets a higher seed in the 2011 playoffs.
Two bruising teams playing good old fashioned football in October. The type of game that gets you excited for football.
6) Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens. Week 1 at 1:00 PM
Is there any better way to open up a football season than having arguably the best rivalry in the league go at it? There have been a few guarantees in the NFL over the past few years and one of those is that the Steelers and Ravens always play themselves tough. The two had yet another close battle in the playoffs last year.
These two teams absolutely hate each other, so football fans will be lucky enough to see that hatred on display the very first moment of the season.
5) Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers. Week 16 at 8:30 PM
Last year, on Week 17, the Packers had to beat the Bears to keep their season alive. They did so, prevailing over Chicago 10-3, in a tight contest the Bears had no need to even compete in.
Could that scenario repeat itself as the two rivals play again late in the season?
This is a truly fun time for football fans as these two historic franchises have rarely been this good at the same time. Their NFC Championship game was only the second time the teams had every played each other in the postseason.
The NFL's oldest rivalry on display on Week 16 with a potential playoff spot on the line. It doesn't get much better than that.
4) Indianapolis Colts at New Orleans Saints. Week 7 at 8:30 PM
A rematch of Super Bowl XLIV when the Saints surprised everyone by defeating the favored Colts. Peyton Manning returns to the area he grew up in as he takes on the team his father played for.
Football fans need to begin to truly appreciate match-ups like this as Peyton Manning is 35 years old. The time is coming that he will start to play certain teams for the last time.
3) New York Gian'ts "AT" New York Jets. Week 16 at 1:00 PM
Much like Bears and Packer fans, there has rarely been a time when the Giants and Jets were both contenders. It's borderline unheard of that these two teams would be contenders, play each other in a meaningful game, and have that game be so late in the season.
The Jets and Giants are two teams that have skirted the playoff line for the past two seasons. The Jets have been on the right end of that line, while the Giants have just missed both times. This game could likely determine which team will end up playing games in January, and who will be watching them.
2) New York Jets at New England Patriots. Week 5 at 1:00 PM
Love them or hate them, the Jets are on this list a lot because people watch them. People will undoubtedly be glued to their screens when these two bitter rivals take each other on for the first time since the Jets shocking victory.
These two teams had about as strange a three game series as one could possibly have. The Jets won a close early season game while the Patriots blew the Jets doors off late in the season. Then, the Jets controlled their rival for most of their playoff encounter.
How this game will turn out will be truly anyone's guess. One thing for certain though is Rex Ryan will do a lot of talking and the Patriots will do their best to shut he and his team up.
1) Philadelphia Eagles at Atlanta Falcons. Week 2 at 8:30 PM
The fact this game pits two 2010 playoff teams against each other is quite frankly irrelevant. This game is all about Michael Vick, the former face of the Falcons franchise returning to Atlanta for the first time since his career spiraled out of control.
No one is going to care so much as to who wins the game. It will all be about how Vick performs, how the fans receive their one time fan favorite and how he himself will respond to the fans.
This game will truly be one of its kind, similar to when Brett Favre made his first start in Green Bay on the opposing sideline. This game is already being talked about more than any other, and one can hardly imagine how much coverage the game will get as we get closer to game day.
While other games may have a more meaningful impact on the postseason, no game on the 2011 calendar will have the drama of Vick going to Atlanta.
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