NFL Schedule: More Evidence Points to Bills at Rams to Open Season
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Buffalo Bills fans shouldn't count on too many Sunday games at 1 p.m. this season. Their team is just too attractive to national (and international) TV audiences.
Last week, the NFL announced the Bills will host the Tennessee Titans as part of a Monday Night Football doubleheader in Week 2.
This Thursday, when the league announces its full schedule, it's expected to include the Bills at the Los Angeles Rams as the matchup for the Kickoff Game, in which the defending Super Bowl champs traditionally mark the official start of each season by hosting a game on Thursday night preceding opening weekend.
The report, courtesy of the Los Angeles Times' Sam Farmer, cited the announcement by CBS that the Rams will host the Denver Broncos on Christmas as another sign pointing to the Rams hosting the Bills to start the season.
"By every indication, the NFL had zeroed in on either the Bills or Broncos playing at the Rams in the traditional Thursday night game that opens the season," he wrote.
A Bills-Rams matchup would feature plenty of compelling storylines, starting with the surprising decision by Rams star edge rusher Von Miller to reject the Rams' offer to re-sign in order to join the Bills.
The Bills last season became the first team in nearly three decades other than New England to win the AFC East two years in a row. They advanced to the AFC Championship Game two seasons ago and to the divisional round last season, falling to Kansas City both times.
The Chiefs' wild 42-36 overtime victory last January moved the league to change its postseason overtime rules.
Another reason to pick the Bills? Everyone else is picking them. They have been installed by Las Vegas oddsmakers as the favorite to win the next Super Bowl after failing to earn a trip to SoFi Stadium for last season's championship game.
Either way, forget Sundays at 1. As long as Josh Allen is the quarterback and the Bills are such serious championship contenders, there's a good chance they will play more night games than day games.
- RELATED: Our first 53-man roster projection for Bills details a team loaded with all kinds of weapons
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Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email to Nicky300@aol.com.
