chongli

Another minor update: On the FOX Early game, Providence, RI and Bangor, ME have reverted back to their original listing: ME: NYJ-MIA, from TB-ATL. Apparently, the switch to TB-ATL was a mistake on one of the electronic program guides. -------- EDIT: The listings just changed yet again. Now Providence, RI and Bangor, ME are showing TB-AT instead of the national game NYJ-MIA. The love for TB12 is real there.

UPDATE: For those in the UK, Sky Sports NFL has announced it will be providing studio coverage for all playoff games, including primetime ones. (During the regular season Sky does not offer its own studio for the post-1 AM local time games, with the extra commercial breaks filled with trailers.)

Yes: Wild Card Saturday: 4:30 PM and 8 PM (FOX, CBS, or NBC) Tripleheader Sunday: 1 PM and 430 PM (FOX, CBS, or NBC); 8 PM Sunday night NBC Monday night (ESPN and ABC)

Some more updates not mentioned above: CBS Early: Monroe, LA: switches from NE-BUF to BAL-CIN. CBS Late: Rapid City, SD: NYG-PHI to LAC-DEN. FOX Early: Toledo, OH and Eugene, OR: MIN-CHI to NYJ-MIA Providence, RI and Bangor, ME: NYJ-MIA to TB-ATL.

Yeah, I agree. No need for byes. (But MLB has byes too. So does NCAA basketball, to a small extent (the First Four). And so will NCAA football when they expand the playoffs. Also NBA with the play-in games.)

You bring up a good point I hadn't thought of (and that really wasn't covered in the article). The article mentioned a lot of playoff teams had better records on the road than at home, but didn't go into playoffs. It was also from last season too.

Of all the advantages cited in the excellent post on page 1 above by @Long Suffering Fan, I agree that home-field advantage has become less important nowadays. Look at this article from The Washington Post (registration required with limited articles for free): https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/01/14/nfl-home-field-advantage-pandemic/ [click expand below to see more of the article quoted:] The article explains why home-field advantage, which was roughly 3 points in the past, is now about 1/2 a point: 1. Better commincation between QB and coaches via helmet, thus negating crown-noise to an extent. 2. More no-huddle play/hurry-up offenses, with play calls, often involving a single word or hand-gesture. This lack of a huddle does not give the home crowd as much of a chance to affect the play. [When a team breaks the huddle is when the fans get the loudest, often egged up by the announcer.]. 3. Easier to access away tickets, meaning teams that travel well can take over a stadium. [Buffalo's Pinto Ron was cited as an example (in the first pic below), where he used to have to place classified in the newspapers' away towns to get tickets; now he just goes online and gets them in five minutes] 4. With seat licenses, the crowds have become more upscale, and the riff raff has been relegated to local bars. The upscale crowd is more tolerant of away-team fans, and even welcoming. 5. Teams travel more comfortably, in full-size jets, and the team comes equipped like mobile "MASH" units, with players using compressions boots and sleeves on the plane. The whole plane is like first-class. Ballrooms in the hotel are set up with tables, ice tubs, etc. Players stay in the hotel the night of the game and can focus on treating their bodies, as opposed to at home. 6. NFL visiting locker rooms standards have improved recently, with more space for things like trainer tables for massages and players' gear. They are more comfortable and less stressful for players. [click expand below to see more of the article quoted:] Also, before someone says Buffalo is 0-4 on the road in the payoffs under McD, you have to look more closely. In 2017, we would have lost to JAX regardless, as the team was young and still had Tyrod. In 2019, it was pretty much a toss up. We could have just as well blown the 16-0 lead at home, or beaten Houston at their place. The teams were even. In 2020, KC was clearly the better team and we would have gotten blown out at home too. In 2021, we had KC beat on the road and should have won. CIN did win the following week. Also, especially in the first few rounds, the home team is generally better than the road team (sometimes a lot better). So it is like a self-fulfilling prophecy that the home team wins.

There were never two number ne seeds in a conference. Two teams did use to get a bye (and also three before that), but somone was always seeded number two. The data Gugny cited referred to only number one seeds. But if 1 and 2 got byes, there would be six teams left to play one another in the Wild Card round, so three winners total. That would be a problem, since the three winners cannot play the two teams that got a bye. It has to be 2, 4, 8, etc. total.

Never trust Baltimore. Remember when they were home to Miami?

Yep. And loss of Daboll, Schoen, and Levi Wallace too.

Yes, I guess. But it is also said "silence equals consent". (There was an old Paper Chase TV episode with this as part of the plot.) So I am not really sure, lol. [Also, I dont vote in polls on this forum that are public.]

Minnesota is fighting for the 2 seed with SF (and SF could potentially be the 1 seed too). Minnesota may also very well play SF in the divisionals (2 vs. 3). They want to preview them.

Good for you. There is a large following of Steelers fans in NC--that is why you get that game. The deadline for affiliates to request changes is today, but it is probably too late now. Still. good to let them know for the future. [Changes may or may nor be approved. For example, WTOL in Toledo requested a change to the Browns game Sunday, but were denied.]

Ugh, I am sad about Murph. I will miss his call Sunday, but I am positive he will be ok after this ordeal. We need to win for Murph.

UPDATES: Raleigh, NC and Spartanburg and Charleston, SC have switched from CLE-PIT to NE-BUF for the CBS early game. CBS Late: Salt Lake City, UT: LAC-DEN to NYG-PHI

https://www.bengals.com/tickets/refund "Will I be refunded if I purchased tickets to the game? If you are a Season Ticket Member: Your tickets, along with your parking, will automatically be credited to your account. There is no action required by you. The amount credited to your account will automatically be applied to your next Bengals invoice i.e. potential home playoff games or 2023 Season Ticket renewals. If you prefer a refund instead of an account credit, click here. If you are a Season Ticket Member and resold your tickets through Ticketmaster: Your tickets, along with your parking, will automatically be credited to your account. There is no action required by you. The amount credited to your account will automatically be applied to your next Bengals invoice i.e. potential home playoff games or 2023 Season Ticket renewals. If you prefer a refund instead of an account credit, click here. Because you resold your tickets to the CIN-BUF game, Ticketmaster will reverse the resale transaction of your tickets. Note: If you have already received payment for the resale of your tickets from Ticketmaster, you will be responsible for returning these funds. Ticketmaster will provide detailed instructions on how to return payment. If you purchased single game tickets: The price of your tickets, any related fees, along with your Bengals parking (if applicable), will automatically be refunded back to the payment method used when you purchased your tickets. There is no action required by you. If you purchased single game tickets and resold your tickets through Ticketmaster: Prior to processing your refund, Ticketmaster will reverse the resale transaction of your tickets because you resold your tickets to the CIN-BUF game. This may take several business days. After the resale reversal has been processed, the price of your tickets, any related fees, along with your Bengals parking (if applicable), will automatically be refunded back to the payment method used when you purchased your tickets. There is no action required by you. If you purchased resale tickets through a secondary market platform other than Ticketmaster: Please contact customer support of the platform where you purchased your tickets."

Not sure if this was already posted:

Juust about to pot this too. Thank you. Updated.

Another Bengals forum post: http://thebengalsboard.com/Thread-We-got-hosed?pid=1306336#pid1306336

Here's another Bengals forum gem: http://thebengalsboard.com/Thread-We-got-hosed?pid=1306331#pid1306331 "NFL to Cincinnati: "Enjoy your 9 road games and 7 home game regular season, because you're playing on the road in the postseason." Cincinnati: -No 1 seed possibility. -Probably no 2 seed either. -A whole lot of possibility for neutral fields in the playoffs. -You can win the division, but still have to play on the road. -You can win the division, have to play on the road, and still get a division winner's schedule next year"

Yep, here's a gem: http://thebengalsboard.com/Thread-We-got-hosed?pid=1306334#pid1306334