Regular season | |
---|---|
Duration | September 8, 2011 – January 1, 2012 |
Playoffs | |
Start date | January 7, 2012 |
AFC Champions | New England Patriots |
NFC Champions | New York Giants |
Super Bowl XLVI | |
Date | February 5, 2012 |
Site | Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana |
Champions | New York Giants |
Pro Bowl | |
Date | January 29, 2012 |
Site | Aloha Stadium, Halawa, Honolulu, Hawaii |
The 2011 NFL season was the 92nd regular season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 46th of the Super Bowl era. It began on Thursday, September 8, 2011, with the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers defeating the Super Bowl XLIV champion New Orleans Saints at Lambeau Field and ended with Super Bowl XLVI, the league's championship game, on February 5, 2012, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis where the New York Giants defeated the New England Patriots.
Due to a labor dispute between league owners and players, a lockout began on March 11 and ended on July 25, lasting 130 days. Although it initially threatened to postpone or cancel the season, the only game that was canceled was the August 7 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game.
The 2011 season saw an unprecedented amount of passing offense: Three of the nine highest passing yardage totals of all time were established: No. 2 Drew Brees (5,476), No. 3 Tom Brady (5,235), and No. 9 Matthew Stafford (5,038); Eli Manning threw for 4,933 yards, which places him 14th all time. [1] It also saw Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers establish the all-time single-season best quarterback rating of 122.5. [2] Further cementing the modern NFL's reputation as a "passing league" [3] [4] [5] was that, for the second consecutive year, the league overall set a record for most average passing yards per team per game, with 229.7, breaking 2010's record by more than eight yards per game. [6] (For comparison, the league-wide average rushing yards total finished the 2011 season at 57th all-time.)
A subplot of the 2011 season was determining who would have the worst record, and therefore "earn" the right to the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 draft. Stanford senior quarterback Andrew Luck was seen as the best quarterback prospect in years. Fans of some teams that started the season with numerous losses (notably the Indianapolis Colts) were openly rooting for their teams to "Suck for Luck." [7] [8]
In May 2008 the owners decided to opt out of the 1993 arrangement and play the 2010 season without an agreement in place. [9] Some of the major points of contention included openness of owners' financial books, the rookie pay scale, a proposed 18 percent reduction in the players' share of revenues, forfeiture on bonus payments for players who fail to perform, players' health and retirement benefits, details of free agency, the cost and benefit of new stadiums, players' salaries, extending the regular season to 18 games, and the revenue-sharing structure. [9] By March 2011, the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and the NFL had not yet come to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA), thus failing to resolve the labor dispute. Accordingly, the NFLPA informed the league and the clubs that the players had voted to have the NFLPA renounce its bargaining rights. [10] After the renunciation of collective bargaining rights, quarterbacks Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees joined seven other NFL players and filed an antitrust suit to enjoin the lockout. [11] [10] [12]
Following the settlement of the Brady et al. v. NFL antitrust suit on July 25, 2011, a majority of players signed union authorization cards approving the NFL Players Association to act as their exclusive collective bargaining representative. [13] The NFL officially recognized the NFLPA's status as the players' collective bargaining representative on July 30. [14] The NFL and NFLPA proceeded to negotiate terms for a new collective bargaining agreement, and the agreement became effective after ratification by the players on August 4. [15] The new collective bargaining agreement ran through 2021. [16]
The 2011 NFL Draft was held from April 28 to 30, 2011 at New York City's Radio City Music Hall. With the first pick, the Carolina Panthers selected quarterback Cam Newton from Auburn.
Free agency began on July 25, 2011, following the end of the 2011 NFL lockout.
Notable players to change teams during free agency included:
The following notable trades were made during the 2011 league year:
The following are rule changes that were passed at the league's annual owners meeting in March. All changes went into effect once the labor dispute was resolved.
The following rule changes were adopted at the NFL Owners' Meeting on May 24, 2011:
A "defenseless player" is defined as a:
The league has instructed game officials to "err on the side of caution" when calling such personal foul penalties, and that they will not be downgraded if they make a mistake so that they will not hesitate on making these kinds of calls. [34]
The preseason schedule was released April 12, 2011. The Hall of Fame Game, had it been played, would have featured the Chicago Bears against the St. Louis Rams in only the second time since 1971 that the game would have featured two teams from the same conference. [36] Instead, the preseason began with the San Diego Chargers hosting the Seattle Seahawks on August 11; the remainder of the preseason and all other games was played as originally scheduled (with the exception of the preseason New York Jets-New York Giants game, which was postponed two days due to Hurricane Irene).
The 2011 season began on Thursday, September 8, 2011, at Lambeau Field, with the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers hosting the New Orleans Saints in the kickoff game; the last regular season games were held on Sunday, January 1, 2012. The playoffs started on Saturday, January 7, 2012, and ended with Super Bowl XLVI, the league's championship game, on February 5, 2012, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Under the NFL's scheduling formula, intraconference and interconference matchups were:
Intraconference
Interconference
When the league was arranging the schedule in spring 2011, it added some cushion in case the labor dispute lasted into September and the planned start of the regular season. For example, every contest in Week 3 had teams which shared the same bye week later in the season, which would have allowed these games to be made up on what were originally the teams' byes. Weeks 2 and 4 were set up so that there were neither any divisional rivalry games nor teams on bye in those weeks, and every team with a home game in Week 2 was on the road in Week 4 and vice versa. This would have kept the season as fair as possible if those games had to be canceled. [37] These scheduling changes, along with eliminating the week off before the Super Bowl and moving the Super Bowl back a week, would have allowed the NFL to play a 14-game schedule beginning in mid-October while still having the Super Bowl in mid-February.
This season's International Series game featured the Chicago Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Wembley Stadium in London on October 23, with the Buccaneers serving as the home team. [38] The Bears won 24–18. [39] It marked the Bears' second game played outside the United States in as many years, as they were a part of the Bills Toronto Series in 2010. The Buccaneers previously appeared in the International Series in 2009. One week later on October 30, the Buffalo Bills defeated the Washington Redskins in the Bills' annual game at Rogers Centre in Toronto by a score of 23–0. Although this was within the bounds of the 2011 CFL season, neither of the two Southern Ontario CFL teams was playing on the same day, and both played away games that weekend. The 2011–12 season also marked the 20th anniversary of the Bills and Redskins meeting in Super Bowl XXVI.
The Detroit Lions hosted their first Monday Night Football game since 2001, when they faced the Chicago Bears on Columbus Day/Canadian Thanksgiving (the Detroit-Windsor market straddles the U.S.–Canada border). [40] The Lions defeated the Bears 24–13 for the team's fifth straight win, the most Lions wins to start a season since the team's glory years in the 1950s, continuing a streak that has been seen as a pleasant surprise for Lions fans, after over a decade of mediocrity. [41]
The 2011 Thanksgiving Day slate featured the Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers winning 27–15 on the road against the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys coming back to defeat the Miami Dolphins 20–19 at home. The Thanksgiving nightcap on the NFL Network showed the Baltimore Ravens defeating the San Francisco 49ers 16–6 at home; this was the first Thanksgiving game for the 49ers since 1972, the first ever for the Ravens, and a game that put first-year 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh against his brother, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh.
Christmas Day fell on Sunday. The TV contracts stated that the majority of afternoon games would be played on Christmas Eve (Saturday) and only one game was held over for Sunday night. The Green Bay Packers defeated the Chicago Bears, 35–21, on Christmas evening on NBC.
New Year's Day 2012 consequently also fell on a Sunday, and the NFL played its entire Week 17 schedule that day. The major college bowl games usually played on New Year's Day, as well as the NHL Winter Classic, were instead played on Monday, January 2. For the second straight year, Week 17 only featured divisional match-ups.
The New York Giants visited the Washington Redskins on September 11, 2011, the first Sunday of the regular season, to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks in which Washington, D.C. and New York City were both targeted, as well as the first such anniversary since the killing of Osama bin Laden in May. [42] Due to the proximity of Baltimore with Washington as well as the proximity of Pittsburgh with the site where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed, the Pittsburgh Steelers visited the archrival Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. It marked the first time the two teams played in a season-opening game since 2003, as their heated rivalry usually prompts their games to be scheduled later in the season. There had been some speculation that the Giants and their same-city rival, the New York Jets, could have played each other that day since the two were scheduled to play each other in 2011; the Jets were the designated home team at MetLife Stadium in the matchup which had been predetermined due to the NFL's scheduling formula. [43] However, the Jets instead hosted the Dallas Cowboys. [44]
The following regular-season games were moved by way of flexible scheduling, severe weather, or for other reasons:
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Jan 8 – MetLife Stadium | Jan 15 – Lambeau Field | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Atlanta | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | NY Giants | 37 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | NY Giants | 24 | Jan 22 – Candlestick Park | |||||||||||||||
1 | Green Bay | 20 | ||||||||||||||||
NFC | ||||||||||||||||||
Jan 7 – Mercedes-Benz Superdome | 4 | NY Giants | 20* | |||||||||||||||
Jan 14 – Candlestick Park | ||||||||||||||||||
2 | San Francisco | 17 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | Detroit | 28 | NFC Championship | |||||||||||||||
3 | New Orleans | 32 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | New Orleans | 45 | Feb 5 – Lucas Oil Stadium | |||||||||||||||
2 | San Francisco | 36 | ||||||||||||||||
Wild Card playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||
Divisional playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||
Jan 7 – Reliant Stadium | N4 | NY Giants | 21 | |||||||||||||||
Jan 15 – M&T Bank Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
A1 | New England | 17 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | Cincinnati | 10 | Super Bowl XLVI | |||||||||||||||
3 | Houston | 13 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | Houston | 31 | Jan 22 – Gillette Stadium | |||||||||||||||
2 | Baltimore | 20 | ||||||||||||||||
AFC | ||||||||||||||||||
Jan 8 – Sports Authority Field at Mile High | 2 | Baltimore | 20 | |||||||||||||||
Jan 14 – Gillette Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
1 | New England | 23 | ||||||||||||||||
5 | Pittsburgh | 23 | AFC Championship | |||||||||||||||
4 | Denver | 10 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | Denver | 29* | ||||||||||||||||
1 | New England | 45 | ||||||||||||||||
Individual [61] | |
---|---|
Scoring leader | David Akers, San Francisco (166) |
Touchdowns | LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia (20 TDs) |
Most field goals made | David Akers, San Francisco (44 FGs) |
Rushing | Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville (1,606 yards) |
Passing touchdowns | Drew Brees, New Orleans (46 TDs) |
Passing yards | Drew Brees, New Orleans (5,476 yards) |
Passer rating | Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay (122.5 rating) |
Pass receptions | Wes Welker, New England (122 catches) |
Pass receiving yards | Calvin Johnson, Lions (1,681 yards) |
Combined tackles | London Fletcher, Washington (166 tackles) |
Interceptions | Kyle Arrington, New England, Eric Weddle, San Diego and Charles Woodson, Green Bay (7) |
Punting | Britton Colquitt, Denver (4,783 yards, 47.2 average yards) |
Sacks | Jared Allen, Minnesota (22) |
The following players were named first team All-Pro by the Associated Press:
Offense | |
---|---|
Quarterback | Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay |
Running back | Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia |
Fullback | Vonta Leach, Baltimore |
Wide receiver | Calvin Johnson, Detroit Wes Welker, New England |
Tight end | Rob Gronkowski, New England |
Offensive tackle | Jason Peters, Philadelphia Joe Thomas, Cleveland |
Offensive guard | Carl Nicks, New Orleans Jahri Evans, New Orleans |
Center | Maurkice Pouncey, Pittsburgh |
Defense | |
---|---|
Defensive end | Jared Allen, Minnesota Jason Pierre-Paul, N.Y. Giants |
Defensive tackle | Haloti Ngata, Baltimore Justin Smith, San Francisco |
Outside linebacker | Terrell Suggs, Baltimore DeMarcus Ware, Dallas |
Inside linebacker | Patrick Willis, San Francisco NaVorro Bowman, San Francisco Derrick Johnson, Kansas City |
Cornerback | Charles Woodson, Green Bay Darrelle Revis, N.Y. Jets |
Safety | Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Eric Weddle, San Diego |
Special teams | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kicker | David Akers, San Francisco | ||||
Punter | Andy Lee, San Francisco | ||||
Kick returner | Patrick Peterson, Arizona |
The following were named the top performers during the 2011 season:
For the first time, the league held the NFL Honors, an awards show to salute the best players and plays for the season. The 1st Annual NFL Honors was held at the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana on February 4, 2012. [119]
Award | Winner | Position | Team |
---|---|---|---|
AP Offensive Player of the Year | Drew Brees | Quarterback | New Orleans Saints |
AP Defensive Player of the Year | Terrell Suggs | Linebacker | Baltimore Ravens |
AP Coach of the Year | Jim Harbaugh | Head coach | San Francisco 49ers |
AP Offensive Rookie of the Year | Cam Newton | Quarterback | Carolina Panthers |
AP Defensive Rookie of the Year | Von Miller | Linebacker | Denver Broncos |
AP Comeback Player of the Year | Matthew Stafford | Quarterback | Detroit Lions |
AP Most Valuable Player | Aaron Rodgers | Quarterback | Green Bay Packers |
Pepsi Rookie of the Year | Cam Newton | Quarterback | Carolina Panthers |
Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year | Matt Birk | Center | Baltimore Ravens |
Super Bowl Most Valuable Player | Eli Manning | Quarterback | New York Giants |
The uncertain labor issues and the possibility of a lockout were speculated to have a minimizing effect on coaching changes prior to the 2011 season, with owners predicted to be more hesitant than usual to hire a high-price, high-profile head coach. [122] Nevertheless, eight coaches were fired either during or immediately after the 2010 NFL season, compared to three in the year prior; only one of the new hires (John Fox) had ever been a head coach in the NFL prior to their hirings or promotions. However, Leslie Frazier, and Jason Garrett did get some experience as interim coaches during the 2010 season, with Garrett being successful in his debut season, going 5–3 in his tenure, improving the 1–7 Cowboys to a 6–10 season.
Team: | 2010 head coach: at start of season | 2010 interim head coach: | 2011 replacement: | Reason for leaving: | Notes: |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dallas Cowboys | Wade Phillips | Jason Garrett | Fired | Phillips, son of former NFL head coach Bum Phillips, was fired on November 8, 2010, following a 45–7 Week 9 loss against the Green Bay Packers, leaving Dallas with a 35–24 (.593) record. Phillips was later hired as defensive coordinator of the Houston Texans. On January 5, 2011, Jason Garrett, the team's offensive coordinator and presumptive head coach in waiting, was named the Head coach for the 2011 season. | |
Minnesota Vikings | Brad Childress | Leslie Frazier | Fired | Childress was fired on November 22, 2010, following a Week 11 loss against the Green Bay Packers, 31–3. The Vikings entered week 12 with a 3–7 record, second-to-last in the NFC North after a 12–4 season a year ago. Childress also faced controversy by releasing Randy Moss without the approval of owner Zygi Wilf and lost control over the locker room. [123] Childress amassed a record of 40–37 (.519) record during his time in Minnesota. Frazier, the Vikings' defensive coordinator since 2007, was named head coach following the end of the 2010 season. | |
Denver Broncos | Josh McDaniels | Eric Studesville (retained as running back coach) | John Fox | Fired | McDaniels was fired on December 5, 2010, following a 10–6 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 13. After a 6–0 start in the 2009 season, the Broncos lost 17 of their next 22 games, and became subject to a videotaping scandal. [124] McDaniels's record was 11–17 (.393) as coach of the Broncos. McDaniels was later hired by the St. Louis Rams to be their offensive coordinator. [125] |
San Francisco 49ers | Mike Singletary | Jim Tomsula (retained as defensive line coach) | Jim Harbaugh | Fired | Singletary compiled a record of 18–22 (.462) during his 2½ years as head coach of the 49ers and was criticized for his lack of focus on the team's offense. [126] [127] Singletary is now the Linebackers coach for the Minnesota Vikings. [128] Harbaugh, a former NFL quarterback, came from the Stanford Cardinal football team, where he led the Cardinal to a 12–1 record in 2010 behind the arm of top quarterback prospect Andrew Luck, culminating in a victory in the Orange Bowl. (Luck was expected to declare for the 2011 NFL Draft if Harbaugh left, but decided to stay at Stanford.) |
Carolina Panthers | John Fox | Ron Rivera | Expired contract | The Panthers announced on December 31, 2010, two days before the final game of the 2010 season, that his contract will not be renewed for 2011. [129] Fox spent nine seasons with Carolina, including an appearance in Super Bowl XXXVIII, and leaves Carolina with a total record of 78–76 (.506). Rivera had spent the previous three seasons as defensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers. | |
Cleveland Browns | Eric Mangini | Pat Shurmur | Fired | The Browns announced on Monday January 3, 2011, the day after the end of the 2010 regular season that Eric Mangini will not be returning to coach the Browns. [130] Mangini led the Browns to back to back 5–11 seasons and an overall record of 10–22 (.313), the second-worst in Browns history. [131] Mangini is currently an analyst for ESPN. On January 13, the Browns announced that they hired Pat Shurmur, a career assistant coach who spent the last two seasons on the staff of the St. Louis Rams and from 1999 to 2008 on the staff of the Philadelphia Eagles. | |
Oakland Raiders | Tom Cable | Hue Jackson | Expired contract | The Raiders announced on Tuesday January 4, 2011, that they will not exercise the option on Tom Cable's contract. He finishes with a 17–27 (.386) record, which included an 8–8 record in 2010, while going undefeated against division rivals, being the first team to go 6–0 against division opponents and miss the playoffs. On January 17, the Raiders announced that Hue Jackson, their previous offensive coordinator will replace Cable, who was later hired as the assistant head coach/offensive line coach for the Seattle Seahawks. | |
Tennessee Titans | Jeff Fisher | Mike Munchak | Resigned | On January 27, it was formally announced by the Tennessee Titans that Jeff Fisher would not return to coach the team in 2011, [132] following a dispute with quarterback Vince Young. Fisher, whose time with the team dated back to when it was still the Houston Oilers, had the longest tenure as head coach with one team among active head coaches in the league at the time of his dismissal. In 17 years with the Oilers and Titans, Fisher compiled a record of 147–126 (.538) and led the Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV. Mike Munchak, who joined the Oilers in 1982 and has remained with the team as a player or coach every year since (serving most recently as offensive line coach), was promoted to the head coach position as Fisher's replacement. |
The following head coaches were replaced in-season:
Team: | 2011 head coach: | Interim head coach: | Reason for leaving: | Notes: |
---|---|---|---|---|
Jacksonville Jaguars | Jack Del Rio | Mel Tucker | Fired | Del Rio was fired after compiling a 69–73 (.486) record (including postseason games) in 8¾ seasons as head coach; the team has not made the playoffs since 2007. Del Rio was fired at the same time that Wayne Weaver, the owner of the Jaguars, announced his intentions to sell the team to Pakistani-American automotive parts builder Shahid Khan. [133] |
Kansas City Chiefs | Todd Haley | Romeo Crennel | Fired | Haley compiled a 19–27 (.413) record, including one postseason loss, in nearly 3 seasons with the Chiefs. Team ownership cited inconsistent play and a lack of progress in their decision; Haley was also cited for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in what turned out to be his final game. Crennel had previously served as head coach of the Cleveland Browns from 2005 to 2008. Crennel won his first game as the interim head coach of the Chiefs on December 18, 2011, against the then undefeated Green Bay Packers 19–14, which was significant as Crennel snapped the Packers' 19-game winning streak ended their hopes for a perfect season. Crennel finished his stint as interim head coach with a 2–1 record. On January 9, 2012, Crennel was named the team's permanent head coach. |
Miami Dolphins | Tony Sparano | Todd Bowles | Fired | Sparano compiled a 29–33 (.468) record, including one postseason loss, in nearly 4 seasons with the Dolphins. Ongoing speculation regarding Sparano's future in Miami prompted Dolphins owner Stephen Ross to dismiss Sparano prior to the end of the season instead of letting the speculation become a further distraction. The Dolphins intend on hiring someone from outside the organization in the 2012 offseason. [134] |
The following stadiums received new naming rights:
In addition, the San Diego Chargers' home field, Qualcomm Stadium, was temporarily renamed "Snapdragon Stadium" for a ten-day period from December 16–25, which included the team's Week 15 home game vs. the Baltimore Ravens, as a marketing tie in for Qualcomm's Snapdragon brand. [140]
This was the last season that Reebok exclusively supplied uniforms and sideline caps along with performance and fan apparel for all 32 teams in the league, as Nike and New Era now have the 40-year rights to manufacture on-field uniforms and fan apparel, with Nike handling uniforms and performance apparel, and New Era with on-field caps. For Reebok, this ends a 10-year exclusivity association that began in 2001. [141]
The first Sunday of the season fell on the tenth anniversary of the September 11 attacks. To commemorate that event players, coaches, game officials and sideline personnel all wore a special stars and stripes ribbon bearing the dates "9/11/01" and "9/11/11" as a patch or pin. Players were also allowed to wear special red, white and blue gloves and shoes. [142]
The Buffalo Bills introduced redesigned uniforms on June 24, 2011. Early rumors fueled by a Madden NFL 12 trailer featuring a Bills throwback uniform had indicated the team would be adopting the uniforms the team wore between 1975 and 1983; [143] the final product indeed resembled those uniforms, with some minor adjustments. [144] The new uniforms (which marked the first redesign since 2002) were unveiled at a fan appreciation event at Ralph Wilson Stadium. [145] The Bills wore their white "away" uniforms in their week nine home game against the New York Jets as part of a whiteout promotion; the last time the team had worn their white uniforms at home was in 1986. [146]
The New England Patriots' uniforms bore a patch bearing the initials "MHK" in honor of team owner Robert Kraft's wife Myra Kraft who died of cancer in July. [147] The Patriots wore their red throwback uniforms in their week five game against the New York Jets. They wore their white jerseys at home against the Dallas Cowboys in week six, thus forcing the Cowboys to use their navy jerseys for the only time all season and the first time since 2009. [148] As per tradition, the Cowboys wore their throwbacks on Thanksgiving Day (November 24) at home against the Miami Dolphins. [148]
The St. Louis Rams wore their throwback uniforms in week 8 against the New Orleans Saints; the date was determined by fan voting. [149]
The Baltimore Ravens wore their black alternative jerseys twice in 2011: with black pants against the Jets and with white pants against the 49ers. [150]
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers wore their orange throwback uniforms during week 13 against Carolina. [151]
The Oakland Raiders wore stickers featuring "AL" on their helmets after owner Al Davis died on October 8, 2011. [152]
This season was the last in which the Denver Broncos wore their navy blue jerseys as their primary jersey, as the team has designated their orange jerseys—the team's alternate home jersey since 2002—as their new primary home jersey color, beginning with the 2012 season. The move was made due to overwhelming fan support to return to using orange as the team's primary home jersey color, which harkens back to the days of the Orange Crush Defense, as well as John Elway's return to the organization as the team's executive vice president of football operations. The team had considered making the switch for the 2011 season, but were too late to notify the NFL of the changes. [153] The team's navy blue jerseys, which had been their primary home jersey since they were first introduced in 1997, will become the alternate jerseys which will be worn in one or two home games each year. [154]
This season was the last in which the Seattle Seahawks wore their pacific blue (or "Seahawks blue") jerseys as the team's home jersey, as the team changed their home jersey color to dark navy for the 2012 season. [155]
This was the sixth season under the television contracts with the league's television partners: CBS (all AFC afternoon away games), Fox (all NFC afternoon away games), NBC (17 Sunday Night Football games and the kickoff game), ESPN ( Monday Night Football ), NFL Network (eight late-season games on Thursday night and Saturday nights), and DirecTV's NFL Sunday Ticket package. These contracts originally ran through at least 2013.
ESPN extended its contract for Monday Night Football on September 8, during the opening week of the season. This new contract, valued between $14.2 billion and $15.2 billion, extended ESPN's rights for eight seasons until 2021. It also gave them rights to expanded highlights, international and digital rights, the Pro Bowl beginning with the 2015 installment, and possibly a wild card playoff game. [156] The league also signed a nine-year extension with CBS, Fox and NBC on their current contracts starting with the 2014 season through 2022. [157]
CBS added Marv Albert as a commentator, [158] while Gus Johnson departed from CBS to Fox Sports to call NFL and college football games. [159] ESPN lost both of their sideline reporters from 2010: Michele Tafoya moved to NBC, where she replaced the departing Andrea Kremer, [160] and Suzy Kolber reduced her on-field work to focus on hosting studio programming. ESPN, who had reduced the roles of its sideline reporters in recent years in response to NFL rule changes, used only one sideline reporter for each game of the 2011 season; among the rotating reporters include Kolber, Wendi Nix, Ed Werder, Sal Paolantonio, and Rachel Nichols. At NFL Network, Brad Nessler and Mike Mayock became its new broadcasting crew, replacing Bob Papa, Matt Millen, and Joe Theismann.
On December 22, 2010, the league announced that its national radio contract with Westwood One, which was acquired by Dial Global in the 2011 offseason, had been extended through 2014. [161] The league also extended its contract with Sirius XM Radio through 2015. [162] In addition to these contracts, and in a first for an NFL team, the Dallas Cowboys signed a deal to allow for nationwide broadcasts of all of its home and away games broadcast on Compass Media Networks, in addition to its existing local radio network. Compass also acquired exclusive national broadcast rights to both the International Series and Toronto Series contests. [163]
The league did not announce plans to compensate their media partners had the season been shortened or canceled as a result of the work stoppage. NBC had ordered several low-cost reality television shows for the 2011–12 TV season in the event that Sunday Night Football could not be played, but other networks had not made public any contingency plans in the event NFL games could not be televised (in the case of CBS and Fox, the Sunday afternoon time slots could have been left unfilled and turned over to the affiliates, likely to be used for time buys by minor and extreme sports organizations, or locally programmed infomercials or movies as they are during the offseason). A work stoppage could have potentially cost these networks billions of dollars in ad revenue and other entertainment platforms that depend on the games being played. (Under the NFL's television contracts, the networks must still pay the league a rights fee regardless of whether or not the league plays any games; a March 2 ruling states that this money must be put into escrow and not be spent.) [164] Meanwhile, the United Football League had set aside a portion of their television contract for their 2011 UFL season, as a potential package of replacement programs for the networks; [165] while CBS and Fox briefly negotiated with the UFL regarding the package, neither network committed to carrying the games, forcing the UFL to postpone its season by a month.
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The 2010 NFL season was the 91st regular season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 45th of the Super Bowl era.
Matthew Phillip Prater is an American football placekicker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). Regarded as one of the best long distance kickers in NFL history, he held the NFL record for longest field goal from 2013 until 2021 and holds the NFL record for most 50+ yard field goals in a career, 80 as of 2023.
Jacoby Rashi'd Jones is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Lane College, and was selected by the Houston Texans in the third round of the 2007 NFL draft. He played for the Texans from 2007 to 2011. Jones then played for the Baltimore Ravens from 2012 to 2014, and was selected for the Pro Bowl in 2012. He is known for two of the most memorable plays in the 2012 NFL playoffs as a member of the Ravens: catching a 70-yard game-tying touchdown pass in the final seconds of regulation in the AFC Divisional playoff game against the Denver Broncos, which helped lead the Ravens to an eventual 38–35 double overtime victory; and a 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in Super Bowl XLVII against the San Francisco 49ers, the longest play in Super Bowl history. He also played for the San Diego Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers in 2015 and the Monterrey Steel of the National Arena League in 2017.
The 2009 NFL season was the 90th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL). The 50th anniversary of the original eight charter members of the American Football League was celebrated during this season.
Mark Valentino Ingram II is an American former football running back and current on-air personality for Fox Sports. He played 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, becoming the first Alabama player to win the Heisman Trophy after rushing for 1,658 yards in 2009 en route to winning the 2010 BCS National Championship Game.
The 2012 NFL season was the 93rd season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 47th of the Super Bowl era. It began on Wednesday, September 5, 2012, with the defending Super Bowl XLVI champion New York Giants falling to the Dallas Cowboys in the 2012 NFL Kickoff game at MetLife Stadium, and ended with Super Bowl XLVII, the league's championship game, on Sunday, February 3, 2013, at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, with the Jim Harbaugh-coached San Francisco 49ers facing the John Harbaugh-coached Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens won the game, which marked the first time two brothers were head coaches for opposing teams in the championship game.
The 2015 NFL season was the 96th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL), and the 50th in the Super Bowl era. To celebrate the 50th season of the Super Bowl, a gold-plated NFL logo and other various gold-themed promotions were used throughout the season. It began on Thursday, September 10, 2015, with the annual kickoff game featuring the defending Super Bowl XLIX champion New England Patriots defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers. The season concluded with Super Bowl 50, the league's championship game, on Sunday, February 7, 2016, at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, with the Denver Broncos defeating the Carolina Panthers.
The 2016 NFL season was the 97th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL) and the 51st of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 8, 2016, with the defending Super Bowl 50 champion Denver Broncos defeating the Carolina Panthers in the NFL Kickoff Game in a rematch of the Super Bowl. The season concluded with Super Bowl LI, the league's championship game on February 5, 2017, at NRG Stadium in Houston with the New England Patriots defeating the Atlanta Falcons. For the first time since the 2003 NFL season, neither of the previous season's Super Bowl participants made the playoffs.
The 2017 NFL season was the 98th season in the history of the National Football League (NFL) and the 52nd of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 7, 2017, with the Kansas City Chiefs defeating the defending Super Bowl LI champion New England Patriots in the NFL Kickoff Game. The season concluded with Super Bowl LII, in which the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to win their first Super Bowl title, and fourth NFL championship, in franchise history, and making the NFC East the first and currently only division where every team has won a Super Bowl.
Michael William Thomas Jr. is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football for Ohio State and was selected by the New Orleans Saints in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft. Thomas holds the record for the most receptions by a player in a single season with 149 in 2019. He led the league in receptions in both the 2018 and 2019 seasons, while also leading the league in yardage in the 2019 season. He was the NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2019.
William Lutz is an American football placekicker for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia State.