This year’s slate of games on Thursday Night Football has not been very kind to many of the teams that have played in them so far.
Players often complain about having a short week to prepare, not to mention the increased risk for injuries and the fact it’s hard to have success on a short week.
Taking a different approach on the subject is Atlanta Falcons center Alex Mack. He points out a few reasons why he enjoys playing on Thursday night, as passed along by Mike Silver of NFL.com.
Star @AtlantaFalcons center @alexmack51 with another view of TNF: "People keep bitching about Thursday night games; those are amazing! I’ll take more of them. Short, easy week of practice, and a full weekend off. Everyone feels lousy so it’s a level playing field." @nflnetwork
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) November 10, 2017
That is certainly a glass-half-full approach. Mack obviously enjoys getting the game of the week over with and having a weekend to enjoy himself.
This is not a popular sentiment of the majority of the NFL, however.
Buffalo Bills guard Richie Incognito recently blasted the NFL over having Thursday games. Then, the Seattle Seahawks lost one of their best players — cornerback Richard Sherman — to an Achilles rupture on Thursday. The mood afterwards was understandably grim for Sherman’s teammates.
Doug Baldwin: "Thursday night football should be illegal." #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/bBdKDqKzSV
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) November 10, 2017
Bobby Wagner has a message for @NFL scheduling Thursday night games. #Seahawks pic.twitter.com/GdTN3SB2TD
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) November 10, 2017
As for Mack, his Falcons will take the field for Thursday Night Football in Week 14 when they host the New Orleans Saints.
Like them or not, each team must play one Thursday night game per season. The most the players can do is make their best efforts to be prepared.