The NFL’s newly put in Black Friday sport has grow to be a sizzling commodity, in line with league government Mike North, who stated the New York Jets had been certainly one of a number of groups that “raised their hand” to host the sport on an annual foundation.
North mentioned a number of schedule-related subjects throughout a latest interview on “The Adam Schefter Podcast,” together with this 12 months’s inaugural Black Friday sport when the Jets will host the Miami Dolphins on Amazon.
North informed reporters final week that the Cincinnati Bengals lobbied to host the Black Friday sport as an annual fixture. Throughout his interview with Schefter, he talked about the Jets as one other crew all for being an annual host of the vacation sport, just like the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys historically internet hosting nationally televised video games on Thanksgiving.
“I hope I am not talking out of flip once I talked about to those who the Bengals volunteered,” stated North, the NFL’s vice chairman of broadcast planning. “There have been others that type of raised their fingers for Black Friday as effectively.”
The league introduced final week that this 12 months’s Black Friday sport could be hosted by the Jets, who will likely be featured in 5 further prime-time video games in 2023 with Aaron Rodgers as their quarterback.
“The Jets, as soon as they discovered they had been the host crew, then began to consider, ‘Hey, is that this one thing we might make a everlasting fixture as a part of the NFL schedule?'” North stated. “Perhaps they did not elevate their fingers in February, however now that they’ve been chosen because the Black Friday host, I believe they is likely to be all for it, too.”
Amazon, which can distribute the sport on Prime Video, reached out to the league about having one of many NFL’s New York groups concerned within the inaugural Black Friday sport. Amazon urged that its positioning as an enormous retailer and having a sport within the prime retail market within the nation could possibly be a “enjoyable approach” to introduce the idea. North stated final week that the NFL additionally checked out a possible matchup between the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants earlier than deciding on Dolphins-Jets.
North informed Schefter that the NFL additionally thought of Black Friday rivalry matchups that includes the Bengals internet hosting both the Pittsburgh Steelers or Baltimore Ravens. He emphasised that the he would not have the ultimate phrase on whether or not the league will implement a everlasting host for the Black Friday sport, saying that call will fall on possession and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
“I do not suppose we had been on the lookout for this season to decide to a everlasting dwelling for Black Friday,” North stated. “Let’s play one first and let’s examine what we be taught and let’s examine what is sensible and let’s examine if it really works for our followers, I do not suppose we had been wanting on Day 1 to deploy this with a everlasting dwelling.
“But it surely’s definitely one thing we should always discuss. Let’s have a look at what occurs this 12 months, let’s examine what the fan response is to that day, and I am positive we’ll return to possession, we’ll return to membership and we’ll discuss would we be all for it. Is that a good suggestion for the NFL? I am positive there’s professionals and cons to each.”
The Jets acquired Rodgers in a blockbuster commerce with the Green Bay Packers final month, two weeks earlier than the NFL launched its full 2023 schedule. North stated the protracted Rodgers commerce talks didn’t have a lot impression on the league’s scheduling plan for the Jets, who he known as a “good soccer crew” with “thrilling ability place gamers.”
“I believe you’d nonetheless see a number of Jets video games on nationwide tv,” North stated. “That was soccer crew. … These video games had for use in nationwide TV home windows someplace.”