I'm going to try and be short and sweet and expect this to get pushed down the post-season FanPosts.

Firstly, thank you Broncos for making this season much more than I thought it would be. You were inconsistent, but that's what young teams are. I have hope for the future.

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Take your pick:

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To we come up with these scenarios just so that there may be some remote chance that you may be right? I don't post too often but I thought this may be worth sharing.

Okay, if we pick Tebow what happens?

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Well I've watched enough American football to be dangerous in my opinions. I don't pretend to have much insight into the gameplay but obviously love watching it. I do believe, however, that I'm becoming pretty familiar with the processes of the NFL due in no small part to the great MHR site. 

And so today I post a post called "Things I don't understand". Perhaps I'll do it regularly. Perhaps not. But rest assured that there are things about the NFL that I don't understand on a regular basis... And maybe I'll ask again  at some stage for some background to why things are as they are. I beg forgiveness that this is not a Bronco specific post but given that the season is over, then perhaps this one is okay.

In addition I should say that we all in our lives reduce new or complex events that we experience into things that we are more familiar with. I make no apologies for the fact that I tend to reduce the NFL into my background playing and following Rugby League and Rugby Union growing up. It helps the cognitive process I think? Anyway, onto the subject at hand. 

What I want to ask about today is television rights and football scheduling. To be honest this is a subject that for as long as I can remember, baffles me because we're talking about the commercial behemoth that is the NFL. What I want to know, is what the background is for having the lion-share of the 16 games per week played within a 6 hour period on a Sunday afternoon. I understand as the season progresses that this spreads out a little, but on the whole the NFL has 16 products to sell each week and makes it all but impossible for you to choose to watch a package of the live games that you're most interested in. They'll choose the games you watch thank you very much. If you live in the wrong town - tough luck man. Hit the internet, Jack, and try soliciting some game links from poor unsuspecting game-threaders. 

In my past life as a child and ardent Rugby supporter while still living in Australia there were 8 games per week of Rugby League. Usually 16 teams in the competition. As a 7-12 year old and generally as I got older, I was die hard. I knew all the players from every team. I could tell you how many games so and so played in the year 1985 or if you asked me who topped the tackle count for each team in the week just gone, I usually knew. I probably should have been spending my time learning an instrument, but I chose a different path called the sports page.

The way the games were scheduled was that there would be 1 on a Friday night. Always a game to watch either after you kicked on from Friday drinks, or were at home as a kid. Saturday afternoon would have a game that I would often watch as a kid, though less frequently as i grew older. And so it went on through to Monday night. After TV rights started to come to the fore in the late 80s/early 90s there usually were only 2 games that were ever played at the same time. And that was in one times zone only. I could still quite easily watch 5 games a week. No worries.

And with that as my reference point, I want to move on to the NFL. I just don't understand why on earth the NFL insists on playing games at such rigid time slots? If they could increase the amount of game slots per weekend to 10 or 12 , then most fans, no matter where they are could watch most games they wanted to watch. In terms of revenue, almost all your products that you have to sell each week, have a monopoly over that time slot. You're not cannibalising your product with one of your other products. You're not competing with yourself. Why not play one game Friday night, 4 slots Saturday, 4 slots Sunday and maybe 2 on Monday night? 

All your broadcaster get all of America's undivided attention in the game they are playing. The Ted Bartletts of the world don't have to build the leaning tower of TV and fans that dare live outside the viewing district for their chosen team, can usually watch the game.

I can anticipate some responses:

- Don't want to directly compete with College Football

- Scheduling headaches - one team getting a longer break that another

- No guarantee that the best games would be in prime time

- The complexities of the rights to the broadcasters

- The desire to sell cable rights to all games.

... and a few that aren't popping into my head right now. But I don't see how these could overcome the revenue windfall for virtually having an NFL game on almost all weekend, during normal awake hours.

I guess for me, I'd just like to understand. I'm not spruiking a new way or something. Thanks for your input!

Hi all… my first fan post is prompted by a casual look at the NFL standings. Now this isn’t something I look at too often strangely enough. I’ve had it in my head most of middle of the season that the Broncos have no shot at a wild card and the only chance we have of the playoffs is to win the division and hold the Chargers off. So the standings were academic if I knew how many games ahead of San Diego we were.

This season I’ve resisted getting too la-la-landy in my mind to stave off the highly probable disappointment that a largely rookie team carries with it. However tonight I noticed something that landed me in La-La-Land, flying first class (getting to use the La-La-Land Air lounges is awesome of course.. free internet and Coke Zero) and touching down for a perfect landing.

How did I get these sweet airline tickets I hear you ask? Well firstly I noticed that the Division leaders ahead of the 6-4 Broncos in the AFC division standings are the untouchable Tennessee Titans at 10-0, the NY Brett Value Jets (very cramped seats and no food service) at 7-3 and the 7-3 Steelers.

Then I quickly realised that the fast improving Broncos can catch the Jets just by actually beating them. That’s the tie breaker. Denver also has to beat KC, the Faders, SD, Buffalo and Carolina. I think, assuming we beat the Jets them 5-1 is possible with a possible loss to the Panthers and maybe Buffalo.

Pittsburgh on the other hand has NE, Dallas, Baltimore, Tennessee and Cleveland ahead of them. Looking at the strength of this home stretch, you could forgive the average Steeler fan for cringing in a corner. One could say it’s just as likely that Pittsburgh could go 0-5 as 1-4 as 2-3 as 3-2 as 4-1. If they go 5-0 down the stretch against these teams then they deserve their bye!

The Jets have Tennessee, Denver, SF, Buffalo, Seattle and Miami. I think this is a reasonably easy home stretch besides the next two games and Buffalo.

My point is that if Denver can take care of business and drop only 1 or even 2 games then they control their own destiny and the chance to get a wild card round bye is not pie in the sky. I feel that they have as good a chance as any of the other current Division leaders apart from Tennessee.

I know this is all speculation and it’s important to look at one game at a time but with the last two games lifting spirits, I’ve not actually heard any talk about this possibility. It’s a strong one and I for one have my fingers crossed a little less tightly than I would have two weeks ago.

Thanks for hearing me out and excusing my overly optimistic post!!