Amazon flexing 'TNF' game is good for business, but causes multiple issues

While that is certainly beneficial to Amazon to have a higher-profile game in that time slot than one that is likely to feature two teams out of the playoff race, it is a gigantic loss for other people involved.

Let’s start from a player and team perspective.

Thursday night games are already loathed by players because of how little recovery time they have between games. By flexing games into Thursday, you are adding another short week into the schedule for teams that were not already prepared for it. Even worse, by doing it in Week 16 of the season, the league is asking two potential playoff teams (or at least two teams fighting for a playoff spot) to play short-week games in the most high-leverage part of the season. 

While the Chargers' playoff positioning seems strong now, the Broncos are likely to be in a fight for a spot and now have to play a potentially pivotal late-season game on a short week. It will be their second road Thursday night game of the season.

Aside from the potential injury risk and lack of recovery time, road teams playing on Thursday night only win around 41% of the time going back to the start of the 2006 season. They have been even worse since the start of the 2013 season, when they are just 9-18 (only 33% winning percentage). 

It also shows an incredible lack of respect for fans.

While the NFL cares more about TV audiences and viewership (that is where the real money is; not at the gate), people still plan trips to games months in advance. Tickets get purchased, travel plans get made and reservations are booked. Only giving people a few weeks' notice to change those — or perhaps even have to cancel them — is an incredible disservice to the people who make the effort to create the atmosphere in the stadium. 

The NFL is a business, and money always wins out. Amazon paid a lot of money for its Thursday night TV package. The NFL cannot always predict which teams are going to make for a good matchup, and to keep everybody happy, you are going to see more flex scheduling.