Ahead of the 2015 NFL season kick-off on Thursday (Friday morning in the UAE), we look at the 10 teams with the most games starting at 10pm or earlier in the Emirates.
The tough draws
The least UAE-viewing-friendly team this year? The Denver Broncos, who will appear just twice at a 10pm or earlier start, mostly due to their featuring in the Monday/Sunday/Thursday night features that start in the middle of the night here and their otherwise later start time for home games in the western US. Here’s a rundown of who else you won’t be seeing much of (unfortunately, most of the NFL’s best teams):
2 – Denver Broncos; 3 – Seattle Seahawks; 5 – San Diego Chargers; Dallas Cowboys; San Francisco 49ers; Arizona Cardinals; 8 – New England Patriots; Baltimore Ravens; New York Giants; 9 – Pittsburgh Steelers; Philadelphia Eagles; 10 – Cincinnati Bengals; Indianapolis Colts; Detroit Lions; 11 – Miami Dolphins; Kansas City Chiefs
T-9th – New York Jets; Cleveland Browns; Minnesota Vikings; Carolina Panthers; New Orleans Saints; St Louis Rams (12 games)
The Rams are a bit of an outlier in the teams with at least 75 per cent of their games on early enough to make for reasonable viewing in the UAE. They are the only team from one of the western divisions to feature this much in the early NFL games, and actually have a chance to make for solid viewing. Todd Gurley is an exciting rookie running back working his way back from injury and, behind new quarterback Nick Foles, they just might be able to cobble together a competent enough offence to complement their dynamic defence. St Louis very well could be a dark horse this season.
The Panthers will be worth watching, if only to get a look at Cam Newton. The NFC South should be broadly competitive, so Saints games will carry play-off implications at the least as well, and Drew Brees will be fascinating as he fights off decline.
The Jets have a good young defence and the Browns can claim the Johnny Manziel circus, but otherwise both should be reliably forgettable.
T-4th – Buffalo Bills (13 games)
The Bills had one of the best defences in all the NFL last season, and new coach Rex Ryan is a defensive specialist. Their line, including Mario Williams, Marcell Dareus and Kyle Williams, is legitimately one of the most fearsome in American football and keep Buffalo surprisingly competitive. But neither Tyrod Taylor nor EJ Manuel projects as even an approaching-average quarterback, and offensively this team figures to be difficult to watch.
T-4th – Washington Redskins (13 games)
Washington have a real chance to be the very worst team in the NFL this year, but might make for some compelling viewing nonetheless as the quarterbacking situation plays out. If Kirk Cousins falters in the early going, the calls could grow loud to return Robert Griffin III to a starting role. His 2012 rookie season is still one of the most electric single-season performances by a player in the past half-dozen years, and who knows – maybe with a few weeks of rest he could step back in and recapture some of the magic. And if you appreciate offensive line play, Trent Williams is one of the best tackles in the business. In any event, a supremely dysfunctional team like this one – from owner Dan Snyder on down to head coach Jay Gruden – can be intriguing in its own way.
T-4th – Chicago Bears (13 games)
It’s hard to point to much that makes this team watchable. The Bears’ two exciting wide receivers, first round pick and Kevin White and Alshon Jeffery, are both already dealing with injuries. Jay Cutler will throw long balls – some of which will turn into dynamic plays and far too many of which will simply become interceptions. But a team that went a largely cheerless 5-11 last year, spiritually embodied by their hapless quarterback, will probably offer much of the same in 2015.
T-4th – Atlanta Falcons (13 games)
The Falcons offer some value among the downtrodden teams who feature heavily in the early games. They’ve endured two rough seasons, but as recently as 2012 were in the NFC Championship game. Matt Ryan is a Pro Bowl quarterback and Julio Jones is as athletic and electric a receiver as any in the NFL. Their defence has some holes, but they’ve hired their new head coach, Dan Quinn, from the always-defensively able Seattle Seahawks, and he stands a good chance to get this team back to competitive in short order.
T-4th – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (13 games)
We hope you like the NFC South. You can watch just about the entire season from this division in the UAE without having to stay awake into (or wake up at) the wee hours of the morning. They made Jameis Winston the first pick of the draft, and his development will make for a compelling storyline and worthwhile watching, especially if it turns out he’s as NFL-ready as Tampa Bay are hoping. Mike Evans and the physical imprint he leaves on the wide receiver position is must-see for the sport, as well. The defence could very well make them a surpsisingly threatening team, with star-level players like Gerald McCoy and Lavonte David.
T-1st – Tennessee Titans (14 games)
If you thought the NFC South had a lot of games on early, try the AFC South. The Titans are the first of three teams with nearly every single game on at 10pm or earlier in the UAE (the Colts coming on a mere 10 times at a decent hour). Like the Buccaneers, the Titans are primarily worth watching because of their highly-touted rookie quarterback, Marcus Mariota, who has flashed some exciting playmaking skills with his arm in the pre-season and is a running threat with quick legs as well. Wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, their second round pick, is a 6ft 5in leaper who will also deserve attention. It’s hard to anticipate they’ll be very competitive, especially in a division that figures to be dominated by the Colts, but they’ll have their moments.
T-1st – Houston Texans (14 games)
Luckily for American football fans in the Emirates, the Texans being pretty much not-good (and staying out of the US evening feature games) means we get a steady diet of one of the most watchable players in the NFL – reigning defensive player of the year JJ Watt. The 26-year-old defensive end has taken on near-mythical status the past few years, with his charges through opposing offensive lines at helpless quarterbacks, his knack for leaping and knocking down passes, and the duelling senses of awe and fear he seems to instill in opponents. By many accounts, he’s the best all-around player in the NFL. Add talents like Jonathan Joseph, Vince Wilfork and Jadeveon Clowney, and this is a defence well worth holding your attention. Unfortunately, Houston’s offence is going to struggle for points – receiver DeAndre Hopkins is an exciting deep threat without a quarterback to deliver deep balls. Between Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallett and Tom Savage, the Texans have three quarterbacks and none you would think are capable of leading a contending team. They might be able to scrape by, but with Andrew Luck at the helm of rivals Indianapolis, it’ll be a steep uphill climb.
T-1st – Jacksonville Jaguars (14 games)
Appropriately enough, the team British NFL fans are probably most familiar with will be one of the most easily watched in the expat-heavy UAE. “London’s team” ... still aren’t really any good, but they do return to London yet again, on October 25 against Buffalo, if any are out there planning weekend getaways. Allen Robinson is a wide receiver with some fun giddy-up, TJ Yeldon could be an exciting rookie running back and Blake Bortles will have another chance to see if he can really take the reins of this team as the quarterback and lead them somewhere, but overall the Jags are still pretty much the Jags – the overwhelming majority of those 14 games figure to be losses.
