Debating the NFL schedule in April is pointless

Much to the delight of sportswriters and bored bloggers worldwide, the NFL has released its 2009 slate of games. So what? Call me Scrooge. Label me a hater. I just don’t see the point in singling out any one game over the other. Yes, when the Raider schedule came out I was quick to look at it and report it here on JBB. But I’m not going to go full Disney here and dedicate my day to breaking down every game. Why should I, or anybody for that matter? Check your calendar folks. It’s April and the draft hasn’t even happened yet. I can’t recall anybody thinking that the Atlanta Falcons were going to be playing in meaningful games before Matt Ryan’s name was called by Roger Goodell. Come to think of it, I can’t remember too many people circling Falcon games on the schedule even after Ryan was given that #2 jersey. By show of hands, how many of you just knew back in April of ‘08 that the Dolphins vs. Jets games in December was going to be so important? I’m sure that I was the only one who didn’t think that Miami was going to go from the doorstep of Detroit (1-15) to the playoffs. No doubt all of the analysts out there went right to every Dolphin game on the schedule last April and just thought, “Oh yeah! Just wait until the Dolphins go to New England. That’s going to be a great game!” Don’t get me wrong, I understand the fascination, but I wonder sometimes if we really are a nation that has some serious attention deficit disorder issues. We live so much in the moment and tend to forget anything that has happened previously. The Disney Sports website has already posted strength of schedule rankings. Of course, that is all based on last year. Last year at this time, the US economy was looking better than the third world swap meet that it is now. So, tell me how looking at last year’s schedule is going to tell you how strong this year’s is going to be? That was then, this is now. Last year, Brett Favre was a Jet. Last year, The Player was a Cowgirl. Last year, Matt Leinart was the incumbent starter before his preseason performance (or lack thereof). What ever happened to the good old days of just waking up in the morning, going to the sports section and looking at the NFL schedule? Usually we’d wait a few months before all the analysis began. Now, we gotta have a full on “SportsCenter Special” mere minutes after the schedule was released. I’m not trying to rain on anyone’s parade. I’m only trying to keep things in perspective. This is professional football, Any given Sunday and all that jazz. The modern NFL is akin with the stock market, its varying components change in value daily. Why do you think NBC and the NFL agreed to the flex schedule? What makes football such a great game is that you truly never know what is going to happen. Football is the pinnacle of reality television, an unscripted drama with original programming every Sunday. We’re all jonesin and need our football fix. But we don’t need to go Nostradamus and act like our superior football acumen is so refined that we can predict which games will be good and which one won’t be worth the price of admission. Instead, sit back, relax and enjoy this script as it unfolds before your eyes. We can revisit the schedule in August when the season actually starts. For now, just plan your road trips and get your popcorn ready.  In April, every game on the schedule is important. There is no one game that is a better match up than the other. Come November that might not be the case.