It's not officially the NFL season until the first edition of Monday Night Football has begun.
The Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons kick off this year's edition, and they'll be followed by the San Francisco 49ers and Minnesota Vikings.
While neither game is entirely engrossing for neutral fans, things will get much more interesting on MNF in the weeks to come. Here's a look at the full schedule and three of the best matchups later on in the year.
Monday Night Football Schedule
Matchups to Watch
Kansas City Chiefs at Green Bay Packers
It would be a stretch to say this game will have playoff ramifications since it comes in Week 3 of the regular season, but both the Kansas City Chiefs and Green Bay Packers should contend for the postseason, bringing some added importance to their Monday night clash.
For the Chiefs, getting a win may be particularly vital since this comes in the middle of a brutal three-game stretch that also includes the Denver Broncos and Cincinnati Bengals. Starting the season 1-3 or 2-2 won't doom Kansas City, but it would put the team behind the eight ball in the AFC West race.
While beating the Packers at Lambeau Field is never easy, the Chiefs could cause serious problems for Green Bay. The Packers ranked 24th in rush defense DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average) last year, according to Football Outsiders. And giving up 141 yards to Matt Forte isn't a great way to demonstrate the run defense is turning a corner in 2015.
Between Jamaal Charles and Knile Davis, Green Bay could have a tough fight on its hands against Kansas City.
Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots
When was the last time the Buffalo Bills had a genuinely above-average quarterback? Drew Bledsoe in 2002? Do we have to go all the way back to the Jim Kelly era?
Given that kind of QB futility, you can forgive any Bills fans who might be jumping the gun a bit on Tyrod Taylor.
"He beats you with his arm. He's smart. You can't trick him," said head coach Rex Ryan of Taylor, per the Buffalo News. "I mean, it's hard to trick him. Obviously, he has that added dimension with his legs. You know, he's great. He's got a great feel for it. The great ones, they just got that presence. He has a presence to him."
The former Virginia Tech Hokie was efficient—14 of 19 for 195 yards and a touchdown in the Bills' victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. Fox Sports' Bruce Feldman doesn't think Taylor is a mere flash in the pan either:
Still, let's wait a few more weeks before coming to any sort of conclusion about the 26-year-old quarterback.
If Taylor does prove to be a stable, productive quarterback, the Bills could be a playoff contender in the AFC East. A Rex Ryan-coached team is bound to have a great defense, and Buffalo had the second-best unit in the league last year, per Football Outsiders, so the personnel was already there for Ryan.
A road game against the reigning champion New England Patriots on Nov. 23 will be a great barometer for where the Bills are in the AFC hierarchy.
Cincinnati Bengals at Denver Broncos
Peyton Manning could face the ultimate indignity in Week 16: getting overshadowed by Andy Dalton in a head-to-head matchup.
The five-time MVP labored heavily in the Denver Broncos' 19-13 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, throwing for 175 yards and an interception on 24-of-40 passing.
It's easy to blame Manning's arm strength for any issues he has on the field, but Pro Football Focus' Sam Monson argued the problem isn't the zip—or lack thereof—on Manning's passes:
What is new is the rate at which he hit the turf against the Ravens. It looked like he was under constant duress from the Baltimore pass-rush, but he was actually only pressured on 29.5 percent of his passing plays (13 QBs were pressured at a greater rate in Week 1, through Sunday’s games), and while that represents a significant jump from his league-best mark of 21 percent a year ago, the more interesting number is the percentage of that pressure that resulted in Manning getting sacked.
Manning's performance tailed off in the final few weeks of the 2014 season, a stretch that included a four-interception game against the Bengals in Week 16.
A similar trend could seriously damage the Broncos' chances of winning the AFC West this year, especially since they play the Bengals, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers twice over the final six weeks.
via http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2566635-monday-night-football-schedule-2015-most-entertaining-matchups-for-new-season
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