The following are given passages.
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Thursday Night Football
Thursday Night Football (often abbreviated as TNF) is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that broadcast primarily on Thursday nights. Most of the games kick off at 8:15 Eastern Time (8:20 prior to 2022 and 8:25 prior to 2018).
In the past, games in the package also air occasionally on Saturdays in the later portion of the season, as well as select games from the NFL International Series (these games were branded since 2017 as NFL Network Special).
Debuting on November 23, 2006, the telecasts were originally part of NFL Network's Run to the Playoffs package, which consisted of eight total games broadcast on Thursday and Saturday nights (five on Thursdays, and three on Saturdays, originally branded as Saturday Night Football) during the latter portion of the season. Since 2012, the TNF package has begun during the second week of the NFL season; the NFL Kickoff Game and the NFL on Thanksgiving are both broadcast as part of NBC Sports' Sunday Night Football contract and are not included in Thursday Night Football, although the Thanksgiving primetime game was previously part of the package from 2006 until 2011.
In 2014, the NFL shifted the package to a new model to increase its prominence. The entire TNF package would be produced by a separate rightsholder, who would hold rights to simulcast a portion of the package on their respective network. CBS was the first rightsholder under this model, airing nine games on broadcast television, and producing the remainder of the package to air exclusively on NFL Network to satisfy its carriage agreements. The package was also extended to Week 16 of the season, and included a new Saturday doubleheader split between CBS and NFL Network. On January 18, 2015, CBS and NFL Network extended the same arrangement for a second season. In 2016 and 2017, the NFL continued with a similar arrangement, but adding NBC as a second rightsholder alongside CBS, with each network airing five games on broadcast television each. In 2018, the rights shifted to Fox, through the 2022 season.
In 2016, the NFL also began to sub-license digital streaming rights to the broadcast television portion of the package to third-parties, beginning with Twitter in 2016, and Amazon in 2017—initially on Prime Video, and later being carried freely on Amazon-owned live streaming platform Twitch.
In 2021, it was announced that Amazon had acquired the exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football beginning in the 2023 season under the NFL's new broadcasting deals, marking the first time that the NFL had sold one of its main television packages to a digital media company. NFL Network and Fox ceded the final season of the existing contract to Amazon, resulting in its coverage launching in 2022. As before, all of the games are also streamed for free on Twitch, and aired on local broadcast television stations in the markets of the opposing teams as per NFL rules.
As with all other nationally televised games, they are also carried on radio as part of the NFL on Westwood One Sports package.

Background
Early history
The NFL Network's coverage was not the first time that NFL games were covered on Thursday or Saturday. ABC televised occasional Thursday night games from 1978 to 1986 as part of its Monday Night Football package. Prior to the new contract, ESPN carried a handful of sporadic Thursday night games (usually those displaced from Sunday night) and the broadcast networks used to air several national games on Saturday afternoons in mid-to-late December after the college football regular season ended. Incidentally, the only reason the league is even allowed to televise football games on Saturday night stems from a legal loophole: the league's antitrust exemption, the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, was written when the NFL regular season ended in mid-December, and as such, it contains specific language that prohibits televising NFL games in most markets on Friday nights and all day on Saturdays between the second week of September and the second week of December, to protect high school and college football. Since most high school and college seasons have ended by mid-December, other than bowl games, there has been little desire to close this loophole, even though the regular season has expanded well beyond mid-December since the law's passage.
In 2005, when the NFL negotiated a new set of television contracts, Comcast-owned OLN offered to pay $450 million for an eight-year contract to carry NFL prime time games. In exchange, Comcast planned to add NFL Network to its digital cable lineup. The channel was added, but NFL Network decided to air the games itself, foregoing a rights fee. The other television deals generated $3.735 billion per year over an eight-year period for CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN and DirecTV (owner of the out-of-market sports package NFL Sunday Ticket).As previously mentioned, Thursday Night Football debuted on November 23, 2006, with the Kansas City Chiefs handing the visiting Denver Broncos a 19–10 Thanksgiving defeat. Each of the game broadcasts were titled either Thursday Night Football or Saturday Night Football, depending on the night on which it aired. This format carried over to the 2007 season.
At its launch, the package proved highly controversial mainly due to the relative unavailability of NFL Network at the time; the league used the games as leverage to encourage television providers to carry NFL Network on their basic service tiers, rather than in premium, sports-oriented packages that required subscribers to pay a higher fee; although, as with all other national cable telecasts of NFL games, the league's own regulations require the games to be syndicated to over-the-air television stations in the local markets of the teams. These issues were magnified in 2007, when a game that saw the New England Patriots close out a perfect regular season was simulcast nationally on both CBS and NBC, in addition to NFL Network and the local stations that the game was sold to, following concerns from politicians and other critics.
Starting in 2008, NFL Network eliminated all but one of the Saturday night games and started their Thursday night package three weeks earlier. This was done to accommodate the earlier schedule and the league's antitrust exemption that prohibits Saturday games from being held for most of the season. In the following season, all references to Saturday Night Football were dropped, and any games that are not played on Thursday (such as in 2016, two Christmas weekend games and an NFL International Series game) have since been branded as "special editions" of Thursday Night Football, and later Thursday Night Special or NFL Network Special. The Thanksgiving matchup was moved from NFL Network to NBC's Sunday Night Football package as part of the new broadcast contract after the 2011 season.
During Super Bowl week in 2012, it was announced that the Thursday Night Football package would expand from eight to 13 games and air on NFL Network, again soliciting and rejecting offers from Turner Sports and Comcast. Starting with the 2012 season, all 32 teams play a Thursday game following a Sunday game that guarantees each team a nationally televised game with 26 of them playing on Thursday Night Football and the other six playing on Thanksgiving. In addition, matchups are created with the intent to minimize travel in the leadup to the Thursday game. In general, the road team will always play a home game the Sunday prior, while the home team will either play at home or a road game against a nearby opponent the Sunday before hosting the Thursday game.
For the 2012 season, a Spanish-language broadcast was added as second audio program.

2014–2015: partnership with CBS Sports
In January 2014, it was reported that the NFL was planning to sub-license a package of up to eight Thursday Night Football games to another broadcaster for the 2014 season. The league had negotiated with its existing broadcast partners, along with Turner Sports. These eight games were to be simulcast by NFL Network, and reports indicated that ESPN planned to place the games on ABC in the event it won the rights, bringing the NFL back to the network for the first time since Super Bowl XL and the move of Monday Night Football to ESPN in 2006. The remaining games would remain exclusive to NFL Network, in order to satisfy carriage agreements with television providers guaranteeing a minimum number of games to air exclusively on the channel. The decision came as the league wished to heighten the profile of its Thursday night games, which had suffered from relatively lower viewership and advertising revenue in comparison to other games.On February 5, 2014, the NFL announced that CBS had acquired the partial rights to TNF for the 2014 season. Under the agreement, all of the Thursday Night Football telecasts would be produced by CBS Sports and called by the network's primary announcing team of Jim Nantz and Phil Simms. The first eight games of the season were simulcast nationally on NFL Network and CBS; the remaining games in the package only aired nationally on NFL Network, but per league broadcast policies, were simulcast on local stations in the participating teams' markets. CBS affiliates were given right of first refusal to air the local simulcast before it is offered to another station (as had occurred in Cincinnati, Ohio where the market's NBC affiliate WLWT aired a game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns instead of CBS affiliate WKRC-TV). A Saturday doubleheader was also added on Week 16: NFL Network aired the early game, while CBS aired the second, prime time game.The NFL considered CBS's bid to be the most attractive, owing to the network's overall ratings stature (CBS had been the highest-rated broadcast network in the U.S. since the 2005-06 television season), a commitment to aggressively promote the Thursday games across its properties, and its plans to utilize CBS Sports' top NFL talent and production staff across all of the games in the package to ensure a major improvement in quality over the previous, in-house productions. CBS staff also cited experience with its joint coverage of the NCAA Men's basketball tournament with Turner Sports as an advantage in its collaboration with NFL Network staff, as talent from both networks collaborate on pre-game, halftime and post-game coverage. During the games, a distinct graphics package co-branded with both CBS and NFL Network logos was used, certain players on each team wore microphones, and 4K cameras were used to allow zoom-in shots during instant replays.With the move of selected games to CBS, media executives expected more major match-ups to appear on Thursday Night Football than in previous years in order to attract better viewership; in the past, Thursday Night Football had been criticized for often featuring games between lesser and poorer-performing teams. CBS and the NFL unveiled the games scheduled for Thursday Night Football in April 2014; CBS's slate of games featured a number of major divisional rivalries, including New York Giants–Washington, Green Bay–Minnesota, and its opening game on September 11, 2014, featuring the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens.In the wake of the controversy surrounding Ravens player Ray Rice (who had been removed from the team and suspended from the NFL earlier in the week following the discovery of footage showing the player physically assaulting his wife, Janay, who was engaged to Rice at the time the security camera footage was recorded), changes were made to pre-game coverage on the first game in order to accommodate additional interviews and discussion related to the incident. Among these changes were the removal of an introductory segment featuring Rihanna (who was similarly assaulted by fellow performer Chris Brown in 2009) performing her song "Run This Town". Following complaints by Rihanna on Twitter regarding the removal, the song was pulled entirely from future broadcasts.The rights were negotiated under a one-year contract valued at $275 million; on January 18, 2015, the NFL announced that it would renew the arrangement with CBS for the 2015 season, with its value increasing to around $300 million.

2016–2017: CBS, NBC, and tri-cast with Twitter and Amazon Prime Video
In November 2015, The Hollywood Reporter reported that in response to the success of the package under CBS, the NFL was planning to negotiate a long-term contract for TNF, with CBS, Fox, NBC, and Turner Sports showing interest. The New York Post reported that this deal would also include the sale of a stake in NFL Network itself.On December 16, 2015, it was reported that the NFL was shopping the TNF package as a one-year deal with an option for a second year, similarly to the current arrangement with CBS; the league also requested that bidders outline goals for "growing" NFL Network. The league was also reportedly interested in selling non-exclusive digital rights to simulcast the games to another partner, such as Amazon.com, Apple Inc., Google, or Yahoo! (which exclusively streamed an International Series as part of a trial during the 2015 season, but would shut down its original video content service in January 2016). In January 2016, it was reported that the NFL was considering splitting the TNF package across multiple broadcasters in tandem with the possibility of expanding the overall package to 17 games. It was also reported that ESPN and Turner Sports were not interested in the package due to its short-term nature, and that Fox was attempting to outbid CBS.On February 1, 2016, the NFL announced that TNF would be shared between CBS, NBC, and NFL Network for the 2016 and 2017 seasons. CBS and NBC would each air five games (resulting in a schedule of ten games on broadcast television in comparison to eight under the previous deal), followed by an additional eight games exclusively on NFL Network to satisfy NFL Network's retransmission consent contracts with cable providers; the eight NFL Network-exclusive games included six Thursday contests, a Sunday morning International Series contest, and a Christmas Day game. As with the previous contract, all games will be simulcast by NFL Network. Commissioner Roger Goodell stated that the league was "thrilled to add NBC to the TNF mix, a trusted partner with a proven track record of success broadcasting NFL football in primetime, and look forward to expanding with a digital partner for what will be a unique tri-cast on broadcast, cable and digital platforms." On April 5, 2016, it was revealed that Twitter had acquired non-exclusive worldwide digital streaming rights to the ten broadcast television TNF games. The collaboration will also include streaming content on Twitter's Periscope service, such as behind the scenes access. This also gave NBC a rare distinction of holding two primetime NFL packages, with them already holding Sunday Night games.
Rogers Media, who owns television rights to the TNF package in Canada through the end of the 2016 season but has not yet acquired digital rights (the majority of the NFL's media rights in Canada are owned by Rogers's rival, Bell Media), successfully forced Twitter to block the game streams in that country, overriding the league's insistence that the free stream be global. Due to the streaming deal, over-the-top television providers PlayStation Vue and Sling TV are also required to black out the simulcast of the games on NFL Network.The first game produced by NBC Sports was broadcast exclusively on NFL Network on November 3, 2016, while the first game simulcast nationally on NBC aired on November 17. A cappella group Pentatonix recorded a reworked version of their song "Sing" ("Weekend Go") to serve as the opening theme song for NBC's TNF telecasts; NBC also commissioned new instrumental theme music by Jimmy Greco, "Can't Hold Us Down", which was performed by members of the orchestra from the Broadway musical Hamilton. Both were retained for NBC's games in 2017.
On April 4, 2017, it was announced that Amazon.com had acquired non-exclusive streaming rights to the ten broadcast television games for the 2017 season over their Amazon Prime Video service, under a deal valued at $50 million, a five-fold increase over the $10 million paid by Twitter. The streams were exclusive to paid Prime subscribers. The deal includes $30 million worth of promotion. Amazon planned several special features for its inaugural game, including broadcasting alternate feeds with Spanish, Portuguese, and a secondary English broadcast featuring soccer commentators Ross Dyer and Tommy Smyth (intended for international viewers unfamiliar with the rules and terminology of American football), and a pre-show hosted by Tiki Barber and Curtis Stone that featured presentations of NFL merchandise available for purchase on Amazon.The November 16, 2017 telecast between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans was the first NFL broadcast to intentionally use the Skycam as its primary camera angle, as opposed to the usual sideline camera that has been used since telecasts of NFL games began in 1939. NBC Sports had previously switched to a skycam-only presentation for portions of two Sunday night games earlier that season because of fog and smoke (and, sixteen years prior, during its coverage of the XFL); positive reaction to the impromptu change prompted NBC to experiment with using the strategy for the full game. The Skycam Angle was also used for the December 14 telecast between the Denver Broncos and the Indianapolis Colts.

2018–2021: Fox and Amazon Prime Video
In early January 2018, Bloomberg reported that ABC/ESPN and Fox Sports had both made bids for the next TNF package. Both Fox and Fox Sports 1 were named as potential outlets for the package in the Fox Sports bid, which was intended to showcase Fox's continued commitment to sports after the sale of its entertainment businesses to ESPN's majority-owner The Walt Disney Company (which excluded the Fox network itself and Fox Sports' national operations, such as FS1, among other assets). CBS and NBC were also considering renewing their existing contracts, but had requested a lower rights fee to compensate for the decreasing viewership of the NFL (TNF had been cited as one factor in the downturn, due to a perceived oversaturation of nationally televised games). It was also reported that the NFL would also allow digital companies to make bids for exclusive rights to the TNF package which forego a television partner entirely, unlike the previous non-exclusive deals with Twitter and Amazon.On January 30, 2018, it was reported by multiple sources that Fox had won the package. The next day, the NFL officially announced that Fox had acquired the broadcast television rights to the TNF package under a five-year deal lasting from 2018 through 2022 (which is aligned with the conclusion of the NFL's other television deals). The Fox network would air eleven games per season in simulcast with NFL Network, and Fox Sports would produce all games within the package. ESPN reported that Fox would be paying around $60 million per game—an increase over the estimated $45 million per game paid by CBS and NBC under the previous contract, totaling an estimated $660 million per season. The Fox deal was terminated a season early in 2021.Amazon renewed its digital rights for the 2018 and 2019 seasons; in contrast to 2017 in which the games required an Amazon Prime subscription, for 2018 and 2019, Amazon also carries game coverage for free on its live streaming platform Twitch. Alongside the main Fox feed, British English, and Spanish options, the Amazon Prime streams offer an alternate commentary feed featuring ESPN anchor Hannah Storm and NFL Network chief correspondent Andrea Kremer—the first all-female commentary team in NFL history. The Twitch streams offer access to the service's standard chat room (along with special football-themed emotes), an interactive extension, and co-streams featuring prominent personalities, while streams on Amazon Fire devices offer integration with the X-Ray feature to access statistics and other content.Fox employed 45 cameras, a dual-skycam setup, triple-lens pylon cameras, and Intel True View replay systems where available. Fox NFL Thursday originated from Fox News Channel's Studio F in New York City, as well as an outdoor plaza setup on Sixth Avenue (Fox Square) with a scaled football field and an audience. A new graphics package was produced by Drive Studio, inspired by Times Square to reflect its New York City-based studio programming; unlike CBS and NBC, Fox utilized the same in-game presentation it uses for all other NFL games broadcast by the network.For 2019, Fox announced that it would produce all of its games in 1080p upscaled to 4K, with hybrid log–gamma (HLG) high-dynamic-range color, beginning with its season premiere September 26, 2019. The telecasts were distributed via the Fox Sports app, Prime Video, and to participating television providers. HDR was only supported through television providers, but Fox stated that HDR and surround sound support would be enabled via streaming "soon".Due a carriage dispute between Dish Network and Fox resulting in the removal of its owned-and-operated stations and cable networks, it was reported that Fox had pushed NFL Network to black out its simulcast of the October 3, 2019 game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Seattle Seahawks for Dish Network subscribers to prevent circumvention. However, due to a clause in Dish's carriage agreement that forbade the channel from performing provider-specific programming substitutions, NFL Network agreed to forego the simulcast entirely, and the game was made exclusive to Fox (making it the first TNF game to not air in some capacity on NFL Network). Fox and Dish agreed to a multi-year carriage agreement on October 6, 2019.On April 29, 2020, Amazon renewed its digital rights through the 2022 season, maintaining the TNF simulcasts and digital content, and also adding exclusive international rights to one late-season game per-season outside of the package (which will be produced by CBS). For its simulcasts, Amazon replaced the British feed with a new "Scout's Feed" with extended analysis by Bucky Brooks and Daniel Jeremiah (akin to the ESPN "film room" broadcasts of college football games), and "NFL Next Live" on Twitch (with viewer interactivity).On October 19, because of a COVID-19 outbreak involving the Tennessee Titans, the originally scheduled Thursday Night game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills, was moved to the following Monday due to the Titans playing the Bills the previous Tuesday. The Chiefs won 26–17. In a similar move, the Baltimore Ravens had their scheduled Week 13 TNF game against the Dallas Cowboys postponed to the following Tuesday. The Ravens had dealt with their own outbreak, which included positive tests from players including reigning MVP Lamar Jackson. For that reason, the Ravens had to postpone their Thanksgiving game against the Pittsburgh Steelers three times, the first time was originally postponed to the Sunday after Thanksgiving in the afternoon, then postponed a second time to the following Tuesday night, then postponed again to the following Wednesday in the afternoon. The postponements forced the Steelers' Week 13 game against the Washington Football Team to be moved from Sunday, December 6, to Monday, December 7, and as mentioned, the Cowboys-Ravens game a day later, with both games remaining on NFL Network, Fox, and Prime Video.

2022–2033: Amazon Prime Video
In March 2021, Amazon acquired exclusive rights to TNF as part of the next round of NFL broadcasting agreements from 2023 through 2033. NFL Network, Fox, and Amazon subsequently opted out of the final year of the current agreement, meaning that Amazon's rights would begin in the 2022 NFL season instead.Along with lead play-by-play announcer Al Michaels, Sunday Night Football producer Fred Gaudelli moved from NBC Sports to Amazon; Gaudelli explained that his production operated under a notion that they needed to produce a "great" broadcast before they could start "breaking things and being different", as NFL viewers had specific expectations as to how a game should be broadcast. Jared Stacy, Amazon's head of global live sports production, stated that they were "challenged by our leadership to figure out what’s next and to take some swings". Gaudelli went as far as suggesting that the on-field down and distance graphic use Amazon's "smile" symbol as an arrow. Amazon will employ 13 "super slo-mo" cameras, two Skycams, and TrackMan ball tracking. Pinar Toprak composed new theme music for the telecasts. Features from the previous simulcasts of TNF on Amazon platforms will return, including X-Ray, and broadcasts on Twitch. Amazon also plans alternate broadcasts for Prime Video and Twitch, such as one that features the sports comedy team Dude Perfect.It was reported that Amazon was seeking advertising rates 20% higher than those of Thursday games in past seasons. Per a corporate policy prohibiting advertising that "encourage, glamorize or depict excessive consumption of alcohol" on its platforms, Amazon is not allowing commercials for alcoholic beverages to air during its telecasts (although they may still appear in advertising slots sold by the league, or as part of commercial time held by local broadcasters).As with all other NFL telecasts not on national broadcast television, all Thursday Night Football games are required to be simulcast on a broadcast television station in the home market of each participating team. To ensure availability of the broadcasts at commercial establishments such as bars and restaurants (which might not be configured to handle streaming-only broadcasts), Amazon partnered with DirecTV (which had historically carried NFL Sunday Ticket) to carry its Thursday Night Football telecasts on special channels for its business customers. In addition, Amazon reached an agreement with Nielsen Media Research to provide audience measurement under a three-year deal, allowing the games' viewership on Prime Video, Twitch, out-of-home, and on local broadcast stations to be tabulated in the Nielsen ratings.Amazon carried a preseason game on August 25, 2022, featuring the San Francisco 49ers at the Houston Texans. The first regular season game on September 15, 2022 featured the Los Angeles Chargers at the Kansas City Chiefs. Nielsen reported an average of 13 million viewers across all measured platforms, which were in line with the average numbers that were garnered by Fox's Thursday Night Football broadcasts in the 2021 season, and an increase of five million over that year's season opener (which was an NFL Network-exclusive game).On October 18, 2022, the NFL announced that Thursday Night Football would add a Friday afternoon game on the Friday after Thanksgiving beginning in 2023. The game will compete directly with the long-standing slate of college football games held on the Friday after Thanksgiving. As an e-commerce company, the game is expected to leverage a captive audience of holiday shoppers for "Black Friday" as a potential audience, including the potential for advertising retail products and "Cyber Monday" promotions. The strategy is comparable to Prime Video's acquisition of Premier League soccer fixtures in early-December in the United Kingdom, which similarly leverages holiday shopping activity.On March 28, 2023, following an underwhelming slate of games for the 2022 season that led to a 46% drop in viewership, significant changes were made in response to Amazon's demands for more compelling games. Starting in the 2023 season, teams are not required to have a Thursday game following a Sunday, while teams can play up to two Thursday games following a Sunday game per season. The league also approved the option of flexing Sunday games into Thursday despite overwhelming opposition from players and coaches.  Up to two games from weeks 13 through 17 can be flexed with 28 days advanced notice, up from 15 days that was originally proposed. Additionally, only games between teams that have not played two Thursday games are eligible to be flexed.

Coverage
Game announcers
The initial NFL Network team consisted of HBO Sports' Bryant Gumbel as play-by-play announcer, NBC Sports' Cris Collinsworth as the color commentator for the Thursday telecasts, and Dick Vermeil replacing Collinsworth for Saturday telecasts. In 2007, Collinsworth replaced Vermeil alongside Gumbel for all games.
Gumbel left the network after the 2007 season and his then-HBO colleague Bob Papa, who is also the radio voice of the New York Giants, was brought in to replace him. Collinsworth stayed on until the end of the 2008 season, then left to take over for the retiring John Madden as lead analyst on NBC Sunday Night Football. NFL Network replaced him with Matt Millen, who returned to broadcasting in 2009,   and then added former ESPN analyst Joe Theismann for 2010.
For 2011, then ESPN and now CBS play-by-play man Brad Nessler took over the Thursday night broadcast. He was joined by NFL Network draft analyst and NBC Notre Dame color man Mike Mayock, and the pairing spent three seasons calling games.
As a result of CBS taking over production responsibilities for the TNF broadcasts, its number one broadcast team of Jim Nantz and Phil Simms took over the broadcast booth. With NBC adding games in 2016, Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth, the broadcast team of NBC Sunday Night Football, were required under league contract to do the same. NBC had initially hired former Monday Night Football play-by-play man Mike Tirico for Thursdays before the league nixed the idea of any separate broadcast teams for Sunday and Thursday nights. Tirico would eventually call three Sunday Night Football games, including the Thanksgiving night game which is in the SNF package, in order for NBC to allow Michaels over a week's rest before the end of the season.  Tirico would also call the December 22, 2016 TNF game alongside Collinsworth, as well as two NBC-produced Thursday Night Special game broadcasts on December 18 and Christmas Day, respectively, both alongside former USFL and NFL quarterback Doug Flutie, who serves as the analyst for NBC's college football coverage as well. On May 31, 2017, it was announced that Tirico would replace Michaels full-time for NBC's Thursday Night Football games. For 2017, Kurt Warner would similarly fill in for Collinsworth on two non-Thursday games.For 2017, CBS hired Tony Romo as its lead color commentator. Numerous complications needed to be resolved, namely Romo's reluctance to cover both Sunday and Thursday nights as required under the Thursday Night Football contract, and the fact that Simms remains under contract with CBS through the next several years. However, the network confirmed via press release that Romo's duties would include Sunday and Thursday games.With TNF moving to Fox in 2018, the network announced that its top team of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman would call the games, after months of speculation that five-time NFL MVP Peyton Manning would be hired by the network to call their Thursday games. The duo was joined by Erin Andrews, who normally works with Buck and Aikman on Sundays, Kristina Pink, and Mike Pereira, one of two rule analysts for Fox. In previous seasons prior to Fox's TNF contract, Buck did not call any NFL games during late October, working Major League Baseball playoff games instead. For 2018, none of Fox's scheduled MLB playoff broadcasts landed on a Thursday (Fox carried the NLCS and the World Series that year), so Buck continued to broadcast both sports, crisscrossing the country in seven cities over a 22-day period. The following year, the Chiefs–Broncos telecast fell on the same evening as Game 4 of the ALCS, requiring Buck to leave New York City for Denver and Joe Davis to fill in on baseball.NFL Network has occasionally used non-Fox Sports broadcast teams for the games that air exclusively on that network. On October 14, 2018, the NFL announced via press release, that the NFL GameDay Morning studio team of Rich Eisen, Steve Mariucci, Kurt Warner, and Michael Irvin, would be calling the Eagles-Jaguars London Game on October 28. They were joined by Melissa Stark, who made her first appearance as a sideline reporter since ABC's coverage of Super Bowl XXXVII, and Peter Schrager, from Fox Sports, and NFL Network's Good Morning Football. The network kept the four-man booth for the 2019 London Games.
For 2018 and 2019, NFL Network borrowed Mike Tirico from former TNF holder NBC to serve as play-by-play for the network's Saturday games (Browns-Broncos and Ravens-Chargers in 2018, and Bills-Patriots in 2019), and reunited him with Warner on color commentary. Tirico and Warner were joined by Schrager on the sidelines. The early Saturday games in 2018 (Texans-Jets and Redskins-Titans) were announced by the trio of Curt Menefee, Steve Mariucci, and Nate Burleson, with Stark on the sideline. Menefee and Mariucci were both dropped from Saturday coverage in 2019, as they was replaced by Eisen and Joe Thomas for Texans-Buccaneers, the early game of the tripleheader in 2019, while Fox's B-Team of Kevin Burkhardt, Charles Davis, and Pam Oliver called Rams-49ers, the third game of the 2019 Saturday tripleheader.
Tirico had been scheduled to call Saturday games again in 2020, but after Al Michaels failed to clear NBC protocols for COVID-19, Tirico was dispatched to Sunday Night Football and Joe Davis worked the Saturday broadcasts with Warner. In 2021 NFL London Game was produced by CBS with Greg Gumbel and Adam Archuleta, Joe Davis and Kurt Warner paired up again Raiders vs. Browns in week 15 and Colts vs. Cardinals in week 16, Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen worked Colts vs. Patriots in week 15 and the TNF game between the 49ers and Titans in week 16.
After unsuccessfully attempting to lure Aikman away from Fox for TNF full-time (with both Joe Buck and Aikman ultimately leaving Fox for ESPN and Monday Night Football instead), Amazon hired Al Michaels and ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit as its lead broadcast team. In July 2022, Amazon then added former ESPN and ABC News reporter Kaylee Hartung as its sideline reporter.

Pregame coverage
Each game telecast on NFL Network was preceded by NFL GameDay Kickoff, which broadcast live from the site of each game and featured Colleen Wolfe as its host, with Joe Thomas, Michael Irvin, and Steve Smith Sr., or other NFL Network colleagues as analysts. The show generally begins two hours before game time (6:00 p.m. ET). NFL Network later introduced a second studio show earlier in the afternoon, TNF First Look, hosted by Andrew Siciliano.CBS games were preceded by Thursday Night Kickoff, hosted by James Brown, Bill Cowher, and Deion Sanders, and was simulcast on CBS and NFL Network. NBC games were preceded by Football Night in America (which was renamed in reference of the host city of the game, such as Football Night in Tampa), hosted by Liam McHugh, Tony Dungy, and Rodney Harrison, and were likewise simulcast on NBC and NFL Network. NFL Network’s pregame crew typically joined the NBC and CBS crews for pregame coverage. NBC and CBS would join NFL Network’s pregame coverage at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time during its games. This resulted in some controversy among viewers and the producers of syndicated programming in the locally programmed timeslot before network primetime, where the pre-game affects programs such as Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy! and Entertainment Tonight (all distributed by CBS's sister syndication division CBS Media Ventures), along with several other programs, which then require pre-emption or slotting on lower-profile alternate timeslots or stations to air in markets where they are carried by CBS, Fox, or NBC affiliates in order to accommodate the Thursday games.For Fox, game telecasts were preceded by Fox NFL Thursday. In 2018, it was hosted with a fixed lineup hosted by Michael Strahan, with analysts Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, and insider Jay Glazer. Unlike CBS and NBC, the NFL Network crew would not join Fox’s pregame coverage, as the latter’s pregame became the main pregame show for TNF. In 2019, Strahan remained host, but with Bradshaw and Long rotating as analyst, alongside analyst Tony Gonzalez, and insider Peter Schrager, serving as insider. Fox also signed Rob Gronkowski to make appearances on the program. To accommodate Strahan's commitments to ABC's morning show Good Morning America, the program was broadcast from New York City, with studio segments originating from Fox News Channel's studios rather than Fox Sports' Los Angeles studios.  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the pre-game show moved to Los Angeles with Curt Menefee serving as main host. Strahan made remote appearances during the season due to his GMA commitments. Gonzalez left Fox prior to the 2021 season to pursue other film and television projects.Amazon's games are preceded by TNF Tonight, which is hosted from the game site by Charissa Thompson, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tony Gonzalez, and Richard Sherman, and Andrew Whitworth, with contributions by Taylor Rooks and Michael Smith.

Radio coverage
As with all other national games, Westwood One provides radio broadcasts of Thursday Night Football games as part of its national radio package for the NFL. Ian Eagle handles play-by-play, with Tony Boselli handling color analysis.

Game announcers
Television
Current
Game coverage
Al Michaels – play-by-play announcer (2022–present); NBC play-by-play (2016)
Kirk Herbstreit – color analyst (2022–present)
Kaylee Hartung – sideline reporter (2022–present)
Terry McAulay – rules analyst (2022–present)

Alternate broadcasts
Dude Perfect – alternate broadcast announcers (2022–present; select games)
Hannah Storm – alternate broadcast announcer (2022–present; select games); Prime Video/Twitch play-by-play (2018–2021)
Andrea Kremer – alternate broadcast announcer (2022–present; select games); Prime Video/Twitch game analyst (2018–2021)
LeBron James – alternate broadcast announcer (2022–present; select games)
Maverick Carter – alternate broadcast announcer (2022–present; select games)
Paul Rivera – alternate broadcast announcer (2022–present; select games)

Pregame coverage
Charissa Thompson – pregame host (2022–present); Fox secondary host and contributor (2018-2021)
Tony Gonzalez – pregame analyst (2022–present); Fox fill-in studio analyst (2018); full-time studio analyst (2019–2020)
Ryan Fitzpatrick – pregame analyst (2022–present)
Richard Sherman – pregame analyst (2022–present)
Andrew Whitworth – pregame analyst (2022–present)
Marshawn Lynch - contributor (2022–present)
Taylor Rooks – contributor (2022–present)
Michael Smith – contributor (2022–present)

Former
Kay Adams – fill-in play-by-play (2021)
Troy Aikman – Fox color analyst (2018–2021)
Adam Amin – Fox fill-in play-by-play (2020)
Erin Andrews – Fox sideline reporter (2018–2021)
Adam Archuleta – London game analyst (2021)
Dean Blandino – rules expert (2019–2021)
Terry Bradshaw – Fox studio analyst (2018, 2020); rotating studio analyst (2019, 2021)
James Brown – CBS Host (2014–2017)
Joe Buck – Fox play-by-play (2018–2021)
Kevin Burkhardt – Fox fill-in play-by-play (2019; 2021)
Nate Burleson – fill-in game analyst (2018–2019)
Reggie Bush – Fox fill-in studio analyst (2019)
Andrew Catalon – Prime Video/Twitch Saturday play-by-play (2020)
Fran Charles – NFLN pre-game host (2010)
Cris Collinsworth – NFLN color commentator (2006–2008); NBC Color Commentator (2016–2017)
Bob Costas – NBC Host (2016)
Bill Cowher – CBS Analyst (2014–2017)
Heather Cox – NBC Sideline Reporter (2016–2017)
Lindsay Czarniak – Fox fill-in sideline reporter (2020)
Charles Davis – NFLN fill-in analyst (2019)
Joe Davis – Fox fill-in play-by-play (2020–2021)
Jenny Dell – CBS Fill-in Sideline Reporter (2014)
Tony Dungy – NBC Analyst and Fill-in Color Analyst (2016–2017)
Ross Dyer – UK Feed/Amazon Prime Video Fill-in Play-by-Play (2017)
Ian Eagle – CBS Fill-in Play-by-Play (2014–2015) (Still calls TNF on the Radio)
Rich Eisen – Host (2006-2017); fill-in play-by-play (2018–2019)
Jamie Erdahl – CBS Fill-in Sideline Reporter (2017)
Marshall Faulk – Analyst (2006–2017 Week 14)
Alex Flanagan – NFLN sideline reporter (2010–2013)
Doug Flutie – NBC Fill-in Color Commentator (2016)
Jay Glazer – NFLN pre-game analyst (2010–2011); Fox insider (2018); contributor (2020–2021)
Trent Green – CBS Fill-in Color Commentator (2015–2017)
Bryant Gumbel – NFLN play-by-play (2006–2007)
Greg Gumbel – CBS fill-in play-by-play (2017); London play-by-play (2021)
Tom Hammond – NFLN substitute play-by-play (2007)
Scott Hanson – NFLN sideline reporter (2009)
Rodney Harrison – NBC Analyst (2016–2017)
Dan Hellie – Fill-in Host (2017)
Kara Henderson – NFLN pre-game host (2011)
’Cousin’ Sal Iacono - Fox prognosticator (2019–2021)
Michael Irvin – studio analyst (2011–2021); fill-in game analyst (2018–2019)
Jimmy Johnson – Fox contributor (2020)
Harry Kalas – NFLN sponsorship announcer (2006–2008; deceased)
Howie Long – Fox studio analyst (2018); rotating studio analyst (2019, 2021); contributor (2020)
Steve Mariucci – studio analyst (2006–2019); fill-in game analyst (2018–2019)
Mike Mayock – NFLN color analyst (2011–2013)
Liam McHugh – Fill-in NBC Host (2016); NBC Host (2017)
Curt Menefee – NFLN fill-in play-by-play (2018); Fox host (2020–2021)
Matt Millen – NFLN color analyst (2009–2010)
Jim Mora – NFLN pre-game analyst (2010)
Jim Nantz – CBS Play-by-Play (2014–2017)
Brad Nessler – NFLN play-by-play (2011–2013)
Pam Oliver – Fox fill-in sideline reporter (2019; 2021)
Greg Olsen – Fox rotating studio analyst and fill-in game analyst (2021)
Bob Papa – NFLN play-by-play (2008–2010)
Dan Patrick – NBC Fill-in Host (2017)
Mike Pereira – Fox rules expert (2018–2021)
Kristina Pink – Fox sideline reporter (2018–2021)
Tom Rinaldi – fill-in sideline reporter (2021)
Tony Romo – CBS Color analyst (2017)
A.J. Ross – London sideline reporter (2021)
Mark Sanchez – Fox rotating studio analyst (2021)
Deion Sanders – NFLN/CBS pre-game analyst (2006–2017)
Warren Sapp – NFLN pre-game analyst (2008)
Adam Schefter – NFLN sideline reporter (2006–2008)
Mark Schlereth – Fox fill-in color commentator (2020)
Peter Schrager – fill-in sideline reporter (2018–2019; 2021); Fox insider (2019)
Sterling Sharpe – NFLN pre-game analyst (2010–2011)
Phil Simms – CBS Color analyst (2014–2016)
Steve Smith Sr. – studio analyst (2017–2021)
Melissa Stark – fill-in sideline reporter (2018–2021)
Michael Strahan – Fox host (2018–2019); contributor (2020–2021)
Pat Summerall – NFLN sponsorship announcer (2009; deceased)
Joe Theismann – NFLN color commentator (2010)
Joe Thomas – studio analyst (2018–2021); fill-in game analyst (2019)
Amber Theoharis – Fill-in Host (2016–2017)
Mike Tirico – NBC fill-in host and fill-in play-by-play (2016); full-time play-by-play (2017); fill-in play-by-play (2018–2019)
Dick Vermeil – NFLN Saturday color commentator (2006)
Michael Vick – Fox fill-in studio analyst (2020)
Kurt Warner – NFLN pre-game analyst (2010–2011); fill-in game analyst (2017–2021)
Evan Washburn – CBS fill-in Sideline Reporter (2015)
Colleen Wolfe – studio host (2018–2021)
Tracy Wolfson – CBS Sideline Reporter (2014–2017)
Steve Wyche – fill-in sideline reporter (2021)

Radio
Current
Ian Eagle – play-by-play (2008–present)
Tony Boselli – color analyst (2015–present)

Former
Bonnie Bernstein – sideline reporter (2006–2007)
Randy Cross – color analyst (2009)
Dick Enberg – play-by-play (2006–2007)--deceased
Dennis Green – color analyst (2007–2008)--deceased
Mike Mayock – color analyst (2014)
Tim Ryan – color analyst (2015) Select Games
Sam Wyche – color analyst (2006)--deceased

Results
This table shows the National Football League teams' all-time standings for games played on Thursday Night Football.
Standings are current as of Week 17 of the 2022 NFL season. 

• *St. Louis Rams, 1995–2015
• **San Diego Chargers, 1961–2016
• ***Oakland Raiders, 1995–2019
• **** Washington Redskins, 1937-2019; Washington Football Team, 2020-2021

Reception
Carriage
Upon the original launch of the Thursday and Saturday night games, few television service providers carried the NFL Network due to disputes during the network's terms in its carriage contracts during negotiations. These disputes were magnified throughout the 2007 season, as two high-profile matchups were to be broadcast by the network. The first was a matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers which was scheduled for the week after Thanksgiving and saw both teams at 10–1, vying for the top seed in the NFC, and the second was Week 17 Saturday night game between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants, where the Patriots had a chance to become the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to end a regular season undefeated.
In the first case, fans were displeased that a matchup between two teams at such a critical point in the season was not available on broadcast television except in the Dallas and Green Bay markets. To avoid such a problem with the potential sixteenth victory for the Patriots, CBS and NBC bought broadcast rights to the game so it could be seen by a nationwide audience on both cable and broadcast television. This ended up causing another controversy, however, as the move by the networks infringed on the exclusivity that would normally have been enjoyed by WWOR-TV in New York City and WCVB-TV in Boston, which were the Giants' and Patriots' respective local over-the-air broadcasters for cable-televised games (the game aired on these stations, as well as on WCBS-TV, WNBC, WBZ-TV and WHDH in the teams' market areas).

Game quality and viewership
Thursday Night Football games on NFL Network are among the lowest-rated nationally televised NFL broadcasts. Critics have argued that the games televised on Thursday Night Football have been of lower quality than other prime time games, as they often featured match-ups between lesser or poor-performing teams, and that the shortened rest between games triggered by Thursday games also has an effect on their overall quality. In an analysis by Sports on Earth writer Aaron Roberts, it was determined that most Thursday games were of average or above-average quality in comparison to normal, non-prime time games, but that this was "by design" due to the leverage of other NFL broadcasters on how games are scheduled throughout the season (which traditionally prioritizes "major" games for either late-afternoon or Sunday and Monday nights).The move of selected games to CBS brought improved ratings: the inaugural game was the highest-rated program of the night, with an audience share of 13.7 and an average of 20.7 million viewers, representing a 108% increase in ratings over the first NFL Network game in 2013. The game, whose ratings were boosted by coverage of the Ray Rice scandal, also brought CBS its highest prime time ratings on a Thursday night since May 2006. While lower, at 9.6 million viewers, the Week 3 game between the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers was also the highest-rated program of the night. The first four games of the package, however, featured blowout victories. In total, average viewership of the games increased from around 7 million to around 11.8 million in the 2014 season.Controversy over ratings and the quality of play in Thursday night contests escalated when on November 28, 2016, a report circulated that the league was considering ending the franchise. The NFL, however, denied this rumor. The subsequent game on December 1, 2016 between the Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings was the highest rated Thursday Night Football of the season.During the 2016 season, current and former players including Richard Sherman, J. J. Watt, and Charles Woodson expressed their dislikes for Thursday Night Football, with Richard Sherman calling it a "poopfest".The September 20, 2018 game between the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns, which saw the debut of Cleveland's first overall pick Baker Mayfield, as well as the team breaking a nearly two-year losing streak, set a record for the highest-rated NFL Network-exclusive broadcast in Thursday Night Football history, with a 5.2 household rating and over 8 million viewers.

Player safety
As mentioned, a team needing to play a Thursday night game can result in a shortened rest period for players between games. On October 6, 2014, Arian Foster, then of the Houston Texans, made a statement considering it hypocritical for the NFL to emphasize the safety of players (particularly in regards to concussions) while allowing its players to play a game on only three days' rest, which he considered to be equally "dangerous". Richard Sherman of the Seattle Seahawks has also voiced displeasure about Thursday night games reducing prep time, and wrote a 2016 editorial for The Players' Tribune about the games. Sherman's 2017 season (and his run with the Seahawks; he would sign a new deal with the San Francisco 49ers in the 2018 off-season) would end on November 9, 2017 during a Thursday night game against the Arizona Cardinals, when he ruptured his Achilles tendon.On January 29, 2015, the NFL released its health and safety report, which states that an average of 4.8 injuries were sustained during Thursday games compared to 6.9 injuries per game on Sundays and Mondays.During their September 29, 2022 game against Cincinnati, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa hit the ground with his left elbow, back and back of his helmet after taking a sack. Tagovailoa demonstrated a fencing response, and was stretchered off the field and transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center with head and neck injuries.  He was discharged from the hospital later that night. The game took place only four days after the Dolphins' previous game against Buffalo, where Tagovailoa was briefly taken out of the game due to a head injury (initially reported by the team as a back injury), but returned to the game afterward. That decision prompted an investigation by the NFLPA as a possible violation of concussion protocol; the NFL stated there were indications that the concussion protocol had been followed in this case. The NFL faced scrutiny over its concussion policy following the game, with critics arguing that Tagovailoa should not have been cleared to play at all (especially with the shortened rest between the games and the multiple injuries); the league's chief medical officer Allen Sills stated that "we want to be thorough, and we want to be consistent and be fair to everyone involved and make sure that we have all the data on hand before we reach a final determination."The injury also prompted discussions over how such situations should be handled during broadcasts, as Amazon faced criticism for airing multiple, graphic replays of the injury during the telecast, and limiting discussion of the event during the halftime show. The first injury was discussed during a segment of the pre-game show, and acknowledged by color commentator Kirk Herbstreit after the second injury.  A more extensive discussion did occur during the post-game show, where reporter Michael Smith stated that "I think there’s room for both concern for Tua — and frustration and outrage." ESPN analyst Cris Canty argued that the lack of discussion at halftime was an example of the NFL "protecting its own interest", while NBC Sports ProFootballTalk analyst Michael David Smith felt it was hypocritical of Richard Sherman to have signed with Amazon to join the Thursday Night Football studio panel, despite his previous criticisms of the games over player safety.

Notes
See also
NFL on Fox
NFL on CBS
NFL on NBC
NBC Sunday Night Football
Monday Night Football
Passage 2:
The Big Bang Theory (season 10)
The tenth season of the American sitcom The Big Bang Theory premiered on CBS on Monday, September 19, 2016. The series returned to its regular Thursday night time slot on October 27, 2016 after Thursday Night Football on CBS ended. The season concluded on May 11, 2017.On March 12, 2014, The Big Bang Theory was renewed for an additional three years, extending it through the 2016–17 television season for a total of ten seasons.

Production
Like the previous two seasons, the first five episodes of the tenth season aired on a different night due to CBS acquiring the rights to Thursday Night Football games. In May 2016, CBS announced at its annual upfront presentation that the series would begin its tenth season on Mondays, before returning to the Thursday slot once the football games ended.Filming for the tenth season began on August 16, 2016, according to posts on Instagram and Twitter by several of the cast members including Kaley Cuoco and Mayim Bialik.Several castings for the tenth season were announced before the season began airing. Variety announced on July 22, 2016, that Katey Sagal and Jack McBrayer had been cast as Penny's mother and brother, respectively. Information about the characters was that Sagal would play Susan, who was described as stressed out and neurotic from a life with her troubled son. McBrayer would play Randall, a cheerful former drug dealer and ex-con. Entertainment Weekly reported on August 10, 2016, a week before filming began, that Dean Norris would have a multi-episode arc in the tenth season, and would be playing Colonel Williams, a tough officer from the Air Force Research Laboratory, who is interested in the men's quantum gyroscope for military applications. On November 9, 2016, TVLine reported that Christopher Lloyd had been cast as Theodore for the season's December 1 episode.

Cast
Episodes
Ratings
Passage 3:
The Big Bang Theory (season 11)
The eleventh season of the American television sitcom The Big Bang Theory premiered on CBS on Monday, September 25, 2017. The series returned to its regular Thursday night time slot on November 2, 2017, after Thursday Night Football on CBS ended. The season concluded on May 10, 2018.
In March 2017, CBS renewed the series for two additional seasons, bringing its total to twelve and securing that the series would run through the 2018–19 television season.

Production
Like the previous three seasons, the first five episodes aired on Mondays due to CBS' contractual rights to air the Thursday Night Football games. After Thursday Night Football ended, the series returned to a Thursday schedule starting on November 2, 2017. Filming for the eleventh season began on August 15, 2017; it was also announced with the taping report that the premiere for the eleventh season would be titled "The Proposal Proposal". Before the season premiered, five episodes were filmed from August 15 to September 19, 2017.According to TV Guide, Steve Holland announced on September 22, 2017, that both Bob Newhart and Wil Wheaton would return this season after their absences during Season 10.

Cast
Episodes
Ratings
Passage 4:
Roy Tuckman
Roy of Hollywood - real name, Roy Tuckman (23 June 1938 – 20 April 2023) was an American radio host. 
He produced, engineered and hosted the "Something's Happening" show on Pacifica Radio station KPFK-FM in Los Angeles from 1977 until his death in 2023.Tuckman was born in Los Angeles in 1938, and earned a master's degree in social anthropology from UCLA in 1967. He joined KPFK in 1972. 
Something's Happening ran from 12 midnight to 6:00 a.m., Monday night/Tuesday mornings through Thursday night/Friday mornings. 
Monday was "environment/anything goes" night, often featuring computer scientist and Ufologist Eben Rey. Tuesday was "health/alternative medicine" night, mainly featuring Gary Null. Wednesday was politics night, featuring anti-fascist researcher Dave Emory. Thursday was "spirituality/mysticism" night, often featuring Alan Watts, Jack Gariss, Colin Wilson, and J. Krishnamurti.
Tuckman's awards include a Major Armstrong Award for the documentary "Upton Sinclair: The Reverent Radical", and an AP Best Spot News Coverage award (shared with Elliot Mintz) for his live, on-air interview with Iranian hostage-takers inside the American embassy in Tehran in November 1979.
Passage 5:
Sports league ranking
In a sports league, the ranking of a team is the place where it is within the division. Generally, ranking is based on won-lost record of games, with the team with the best record at the top, and the worst record at the bottom. Another common method is a points-based ranking system, where a team is awarded a certain number of points per win, fewer points per tie, and none for a loss.
In most sports, with association football generally being an exception, teams with the better records are awarded the advantage of playing in the postseason and all the glory that accompanies this privilege.
In leagues that use promotion and relegation, being in or near last place typically results in relegation to the next-lower league, although in some leagues, teams that finish near but not at the bottom may enter a promotion/relegation playoff with one or more teams from the next-lower league, and some other leagues relegate teams based on performance over multiple seasons. In leagues with franchise systems, such as those in the US and Canada and in Australia, being in last place is only harmful to the team's reputation and not its place in the league. However, in some franchised leagues, the last place finisher may receive special compensation, such as being offered the first draft choice.

By sport
Association football
Most association football leagues do not directly use teams' won-drawn-lost record to determine ranking. Instead, a points system is used: 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss.
This system is also used in group stages of major international competitions (such as the FIFA World Cup) and international club competitions (such as the UEFA Champions League and Copa Libertadores).
All competitions also have a tiebreaking procedure to separate teams that are level on points.
Most leagues determine their champions solely by regular-season standings. The most notable exceptions to this rule are leagues in North America and Australia. The top leagues in both regions—Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States and Canada, Liga MX in Mexico, and the A-League in Australia (plus one team in New Zealand)—operate playoff systems to determine the season champion (or, in Mexico, two season champions). MLS and the A-League are franchised, while Liga MX uses promotion and relegation.
As a general rule, teams that finish sufficiently high on the regular-season table also earn the right to play in the next edition of one of the international club competitions for their region. For example, European clubs (more precisely, clubs in areas governed by UEFA, which includes several countries that lie partially or totally outside geographic Europe) can qualify for the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, or UEFA Europa Conference League. Similarly, top teams in other parts of the world can qualify for the Copa Libertadores, AFC Champions League, CAF Champions League, CONCACAF Champions League, or OFC Champions League.

Cricket
In most T20 cricket leagues, the top four teams from the group stage advance to the playoffs, which are held under the Page playoff format. 
Initially in the Indian Premier League, there were 52 matches in each league. This was increased to 96 matches in 2011. The top three teams in this league used to automatically make it to the now-defunct Champions League Twenty20, held by International Cricket Council every year.

Baseball
In Major League Baseball, there are three divisions in each league. The leader in each division automatically makes the playoffs, regardless of record. As of 2012, two additional teams, known as the wild cards, play one game to determine who will face the division winner with the best record. From 1995 to 2011, a single wild card team reached the playoffs; before 1969 one team from each league reached the World Series, and from 1969 to 1993 each league had two divisions, whose leaders played a series to determine the league champion and entrant in the World Series. The 1994 season was played using a three-division, one-wild-card setup, but a labor dispute ended the season before these honors could be earned by any team (the first time in 90 years the United States would be without a World Series).
In the Division Series, the team with the best record of the three plays the wild card survivor, and the other two teams play each other in a best-of-five playoff. Beginning with the 2012 postseason, the team with the best record plays the wild-card survivor, regardless of divisional alignment. Previously, teams from the same division were not allowed to meet in the Division Series. The winners of each series play each other in a League Championship Series in a best-of-seven playoff to determine the pennant winner. The two pennant winners then play a best-of-seven series known as the World Series to determine the champion.

Basketball and Hockey
In the NBA and NHL, finishing in last place does not guarantee the first draft choice. Rather, a lottery is used between all of the lower-ranking teams (The 14 out of 30 that failed to reach the postseason).  The team with the worst record is given the highest odds of winning the lottery (often 4-to-1), but is not guaranteed the first choice.  In the NBA, the first three draft choices are chosen via the lottery, and each winning team receives the draft place it won in the lottery.  In the NHL, only one lottery winner is chosen, and if the team is not one of the four worst teams record-wise in the league, it improves four positions in the draft.  If the team is one of the worst four, it receives the first draft choice.  In both leagues, the remaining teams are sorted by their records during the regular season (lottery teams) or playoff performance.  The lottery only affects the first round of the draft.  This format is used to prevent a team from losing intentionally in order to automatically gain the first draft choice privilege.

American football
In the NFL, there are two conferences—the AFC and NFC—which are each divided into four divisions—North, South, East, and West.  The winner of each division plus three "wild card" teams from each conference advance to the playoffs.  The team with the best record in each conference receives a bye in the first round of the playoffs, known as the Wild Card Round, and automatically advances to the Divisional Round (second round).  The six other teams play single-elimination games; the lowest seed of the three winners advances to play the bye team, while the other two Wild Card Round winners play one another.  The Divisional Round winners advance to the conference championship games and then to the Super Bowl, where the winner receives the Lombardi Trophy and title of Super Bowl Champion, along with championship rings for each member.  The NFL Draft is held every April and the order of selection is based on the records from the 16-game regular season, from worst to best, with the Super Bowl champions selecting last.  Trading rules are the same as in basketball and hockey, and trading the rights of players after they have been drafted but before they have signed a contract is not uncommon.

Rugby union
As with association football, most leagues in rugby union use a points system to determine ranking. The most commonly used system in the sport is:

Base points:  Win: 4, Draw: 2, Loss: 0
Bonus points:
1 point for scoring 4 or more tries. In France's professional league, the try bonus is awarded to a team that scores at least 3 more tries than its opponent.
1 point for losing by 7 points or less (the value of a converted try)This system is used in the group stages of all competitions operated by World Rugby, such as the Rugby World Cup. It is also used in group stages of most international club competitions, including the Heineken Cup.
While The Rugby Championship in the Southern Hemisphere has always used the standard bonus points system, its Northern Hemisphere counterpart, the Six Nations Championship, did not use said system until 2017. It instead used a system with no bonus points:  Win: 2 points, Draw: 1 point,  Loss: 0 points. When the Six Nations adopted the standard bonus points system, it added a provision that a team that completes the Grand Slam by defeating all other opponents receives 3 extra table points. This ensures that a Grand Slam winner will win the championship regardless of bonus points earned by any other teams. All competitions also have a tiebreaking procedure to separate teams that are level on points.
Unlike most association football leagues, rugby union leagues generally determine their champions in a knockout playoff. The most common system is a four-team Shaughnessy playoff, though France's Top 14 has a six-team playoff.

See also
Elimination from possibility of reaching postseason

Footnotes
Passage 6:
2018 College Football Playoff National Championship
The 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game played on January 8, 2018, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, and was televised nationally by ESPN. The fourth College Football Playoff National Championship, the game determined a national champion in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision for the 2017 season. Aside from the all star games following this, this was the cumulating game of the 2017-18 bowl season. Sponsored by telecommunications company AT&T, the game was officially known as the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship presented by AT&T. 
The Alabama Crimson Tide coming back from a 13–0 deficit at halftime, defeated the Georgia Bulldogs 26–23. This was the first CFP National Championship game to be decided into overtime, and the first overtime National Championship game since the 2003 Fiesta Bowl. True freshman quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and defensive tackle Daron Payne were respectively named the offensive and defensive players of the game.
The College Football Playoff selection committee chose the semifinalists following the conclusion of the 2017 regular season. Alabama and Georgia advanced to the national championship after winning the semifinal games hosted by the Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl Game respectively on January 1, 2018.

Background
The Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia was announced as the host site for the fourth College Football National Championship on November 4, 2015.

2018 College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff (CFP) selection committee selected four teams to advance to the playoff: the Clemson Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners, Georgia Bulldogs, and Alabama Crimson Tide. The semifinals were played on January 1, 2018. The first semifinal, played at the Rose Bowl, Georgia won 54-48, after a 27 yard run by Sony Michel, shortly after a blocked Oklahoma field goal in the second overtime. In the second semifinal, played at the Sugar Bowl, Alabama defeated defending national champion Clemson 24-6.

Teams
Alabama
The Alabama Crimson Tide defeated the Clemson Tigers in the 2018 Sugar Bowl by a score of 24–6 to reach the championship game. The Tide had a 12–1 season, becoming the SEC West Division co-champions with the Auburn Tigers. The Crimson Tide were coached by Nick Saban.

Georgia
The Georgia Bulldogs defeated the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2018 Rose Bowl by a score of 54–48 in double overtime to reach the championship game. The Bulldogs had a 13–1 season claiming their 13th Southeastern Conference (SEC) championship with a rematch victory over the Auburn Tigers, 28–7. The Bulldogs were coached by Kirby Smart.

Starting lineups
Source:

Game summary
First half
After winning the coin toss, Alabama deferred to the second half and Georgia received the ball to begin the game. After two plays, quarterback Jake Fromm attempted a pass downfield and was intercepted by Tony Brown. Alabama began their first drive of the game, and, after eleven plays, that drive ended with kicker Andy Pappanastos missing a 40-yard field goal. The teams each had three-and-outs for the game's first two punts. During Georgia's ensuing drive, the quarter ended, with no score.After a failed third down conversion, on the second play of the second quarter, Georgia kicker Rodrigo Blankenship hit a 41-yard field goal to open the scoring and put Georgia in the lead by three. Alabama's ensuing drive went nowhere, as they gained four yards on three plays and punted. Georgia took the ball and drove down the field, and found themselves with a first and goal at the Alabama 10-yard-line; the Tide defense held, however, and the Bulldogs settled for a second field goal and took a 6–0 lead with just over seven and a half minutes until half. On Alabama's next drive, the Georgia defense held yet again and Alabama's J. K. Scott punted for the third time. Just prior to the punt, Georgia wide receiver Javon Wims was shown walking to the locker room, reportedly with a left shoulder injury. Both defenses then forced punts, and Georgia took back over with 1:19 remaining in the half on their own 31-yard-line. Nine plays later, on Alabama's 1-yard-line, Mecole Hardman took a direct snap, faked a handoff, and ran into the end zone for the game's first touchdown, putting Georgia up 13–0 going into halftime.

Second half
Because they deferred the coin toss, Alabama received the ball first in the second half. They started their drive on their own 22-yard-line. Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama's backup quarterback, started the second half for the Tide; that drive quickly resulted in a three-and-out. The initial punt was blocked, but an offside call gave the Tide another chance to punt. Georgia started their drive on their own 36-yard-line, but punted on 4th & 17. Alabama took over on their own 44-yard-line. The teams then traded touchdowns on consecutive drives; Alabama scored their first points of the game on a 6-yard pass from Tagovailoa to Ruggs, but Georgia immediately responded with an 80-yard touchdown connection from Fromm to Mecole Hardman, putting Georgia up 20–7. On the second play of Alabama's ensuing drive, Tagovailoa, while scrambling to the left, threw into traffic and was intercepted by Georgia's Deandre Baker. Up 13, the Bulldogs took over possession of the ball on Alabama's 39-yard-line. The Tide defense responded immediately, however, as Raekwon Davis intercepted a Jake Fromm pass on the first play of Georgia's drive, returning the pick to the UGA 40-yard-line. The Tide gained fifteen yards on six plays and kicker Andy Pappanastos avenged his earlier miss with a 43-yard field goal that put Bama within ten. The teams then traded punts. Just prior to Alabama's punt, it was announced that an Alabama defensive back, Kyriq McDonald, had collapsed on the sideline; the situation was described as a "serious medical emergency". He was loaded onto a medical stretcher awake and conscious. Georgia could not muster anything on offense that drive, and punted. The fourth quarter saw Tagovailoa lead the Tide to come back and tie the game at 20 with 3:49. Alabama regained possession, and with three seconds remaining in the game, Andy Pappanastos missed a potential game-winning 36-yard field goal wide left, sending the CFP Championship to overtime, the first in the era.

Overtime
In overtime, Georgia had an unsuccessful drive that resulted in both a three-and-out, and a 13-yard loss sack to Fromm.  Georgia opted to attempt a 51-yard field goal, which they made. On Alabama's first offensive play in overtime, Tagovailoa was sacked for a 16-yard loss, but immediately followed that with a game-winning 41-yard touchdown pass to DeVonta Smith, in a play that has since been called 2nd and 26 by fans. Tagovailoa was named the offensive player of the game, and Daron Payne was named the defensive player of the game.

Scoring summary
Statistics
Broadcasting
The game was televised nationally by ESPN and ESPN Radio. On January 8, 2018, the network announced that its broadcast would feature a live performance by Kendrick Lamar during halftime. This performance was separate from the event proper at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (which featured a traditional halftime show with the marching bands of the participating teams), and originated from Centennial Olympic Park.

See also
Alabama–Georgia football rivalry
College football national championships in NCAA Division I FBS
Super Bowl LIII, the NFL championship game contested at the same venue on February 3, 2019
Passage 7:
WNFL
WNFL (1440 AM) is an American all-sports radio station located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The station is locally owned and operated by Midwest Communications, which owns six other stations in Northeast Wisconsin. WNFL simulcasts the programming of WRNW in Milwaukee from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays. The station is also an affiliate of Fox Sports Radio, carrying much of their line-up for the remainder of the day and on weekends. It airs one minute news updates from CBS at approximately 45 minutes past the hour. In addition to the station's sports-talk offerings, WNFL airs Milwaukee Bucks basketball play-by-play and local high school football and basketball games. Milwaukee Brewers baseball games during the work week are also on WNFL, with night and weekend games on sister station WTAQ.
Former programming on the station included The Steve Czaban Show and the station's local Maino & Nick (John Maino and Nick Vitrano) show.
WNFL's studios and transmitter are located on Bellevue Street in the Green Bay suburb of Bellevue. Weather updates are provided by the "FOX 11 Severe Weather Lab" at WLUK-TV.

History
The Green Bay Press-Gazette built WJPG – a daytimer – in 1947 and it began broadcasting with 1000 watts of power on 810 kHz on December 12, 1947. Nighttime service was added in the station's early ears, and WJPG changed AM frequencies from 810 to 1440 kHz on May 24, 1951. Daytime power was increased to 5,000 watts on June 16, 1954.WJPG was a CONELRAD authorized radio station, meaning that if CONELRAD were activated, WJPG would remain on the air and transmit emergency information. A CONELRAD alarm was incorrectly sent to the WJPG control station on the evening of November 5, 1959. The message sent to the control station was "This is an air defense radio alert", rather than what should have been sent for a test, "This is an air defense line check." Northeast Wisconsin's three television stations (WFRV, WLUK, and WBAY) and radio stations WBAY and WJPG were all taken offline for 20 minutes as they prepared to implement CONELRAD alert procedures, until the error was realized and the alert preparation was reversed.WJPG changed its call letters to WNFL on August 7, 1967, several months after the Green Bay Packers won Super Bowl I. WNFL changed ownership several times until 1996, when Midwest Communications acquired the station, along with sister stations WNCY and WYDR (then WROE).

WNFL personalities
Mark Daniels: "WNFL Sports Report" anchor and high school sports play-by-play
Doug Higgins: Weekend weather (from WLUK-TV)
Pete Petoniak: Morning/early-afternoon weather (from WLUK-TV)
Patrick Powell: Late-afternoon/evening/overnight weather (from WLUK-TV)
Jason Hillery: Program Director

Answer the question based on the given passages. Only give me the answer and do not output any other words.

Question: The league playing in the Thursday night football game is a type of what?



Answer: sports league Sports league league