My Friends,
All that hand wringing that went on at Fox Sports headquarters when NBC was
plotting to snatch the Bears-Patriots contest appears to have been with good
reason. Fox failed to protect that game with one of its five
"vetoes," but still hoped to shift it into the marquee 3:15 slot and
broadcast its pregame Fox NFL Live from Gillette Stadium as the network
showcased the matchup. Then the battle featuring the undefeated Bears facing
the always strong Patriots appeared on NBC's radar screen as something they
might want, and it was left to the league to mediate.
The Bears loss to the Dolphins removed some of the game's luster, though, and
NBC settled the matter when they opted to keep the Eagles-Colts tilt the league
had originally designated for that night, pitting the resurgent Donovan McNabb
against an undefeated Peyton Manning. But now the Colts have also suffered
their first loss, and they'll face a likely swirling Eagles squad who lost
McNabb for the season (again) to a torn ACL.
Somewhere Rupert Murdoch is smiling, and GE corporate wonks are wondering why
they paid up for the flex.
LBF
11/21/2006