2024 NFL season: Which team should play in the most prime-time games?
The unveiling of prime-time assignments is one of the most anticipated aspects of the release of the NFL’s regular-season schedule, and that will be no less true when the 2024 slate is revealed later this month.
Last season, the Buffalo Bills played in a league-high seven prime-time games (going 4-3 in those contests), while the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys and Los Angeles Chargers each played in six. Before learning which teams will be featured in these coveted games throughout the NFL’s 18-week slate, we asked our analysts to answer the following question:
Which NFL team should play in the MOST prime-time games in the 2024 season?
PICK: KANSAS CITY CHIEFS
The answer to this question will be a no-brainer until the Chiefs stop winning titles. They are the first Super Bowl champions to go back-to-back in two decades, and they have a legitimate shot at becoming the first franchise ever to win three Lombardi Trophies in a row. They have the best player in the league in quarterback Patrick Mahomes. If that isn’t enough to attract viewers, the slate of opposing teams figures to be daunting, as well, including heavyweight matchups against opponents such as Baltimore, Buffalo, Cincinnati and San Francisco. Throw in some more Taylor Swift appearances for that non-traditional football crowd, and the Chiefs will once again be can’t-miss TV.
PICK: BALTIMORE RAVENS
The Ravens will be fascinating, so long as Lamar Jackson is under center. The two-time MVP never fails to entertain viewers with remarkable playmaking ability through the air or on the ground, and he’s now joined in the backfield by Derrick Henry, one of the best running backs of this era. Not to mention, Baltimore brings back the majority of its defense, which ranked first in points allowed in 2023. This is a team ready to make another push for a Lombardi.
PICK: KANSAS CITY CHIEFS
To the victor go the spoils. The Kansas City Chiefs and their fans have earned the right to play in the most prime-time games based on the team’s performance over the last two seasons. At the time of the 2023 schedule release, the Chiefs were one of four teams (along with the Bills, Cowboys and Chargers) slated to play in six prime-time games. I’m not sure what those others did in the 2022 NFL season to earn equal footing (securing a playoff berth isn’t quite the same as a Super Bowl title), but they did. In the end, Kansas City ended up playing five games under the lights in 2023 — the least of the four teams. We’ll see how the schedule shakes out this year.
PICK: HOUSTON TEXANS
The Chiefs feel like the one true answer, and I won’t be mad if they inevitably end up in more marquee slots than any other team. BUT my non-Chiefs pick is the Texans. C.J. Stroud is a budding star who announced his NFL arrival by reaching the postseason, winning a playoff game and earning the Offensive Rookie of the Year award. He is electric, and it bleeds into the rest of the offense, the same way DeMeco Ryans’ leadership and energy intoxicate the defense. It’s easy to root for this young team.
PICK: KANSAS CITY CHIEFS
The winners of each of the last TWO Super Bowls, the Chiefs are an extremely easy choice for me. They have the best quarterback in the league in Patrick Mahomes. The top tight end in Travis Kelce. The NFL’s premier defensive tackle in Chris Jones. A shiny new deep threat in Xavier Worthy. And who could forget about Big Red? This team is going for a three-peat, and that just screams to be showcased in prime time.
