One of my favorite websites remains 506 Sports.
As sports blogging grew in stature years ago, 506 Sports was one of those early websites that absolutely knew its lane and completely owned it. The premise was simple enough: What games will be shown in what parts of the country, and what announcers will be calling those games? Every Wednesday I would race to 506 Sports to see what games would be in my local market, and the maps were a joy to see each week. Would I be able to watch the games I wanted to from home, or would this be a week where my wife and I were headed to the nearest Elephant and Castle in downtown Washington, D.C.?
Over time, the increase in primetime games as well as the explosion of NFL Sunday Ticket has seen more games become national telecasts, but my need for 506 Sports has not diminished. If only to answer questions from family members across the country when they text me on Sunday morning, if they’ll get the New England Patriots game where they live, but I digress …
I promise you, I’m getting somewhere with this.
Specifically, the 506 Sports map for this week’s NFL. This week CBS has a double-header, and in the afternoon most of the nation will see Kansas City versus Denver. Those of us in the Baltimore and Cleveland media markets, however, will get Browns versus Ravens in that window:
Sorry Mom, but you’re stuck with Ravens versus Browns Sunday afternoon.
As for FOX Sports, again they have just the one game this weekend. And depending on where you live, you might get shut out of one of the best games of the season:
That is the FOX Sports broadcast map, courtesy of 506 Sports. What you see in blue there? NFL fans in those markets will get to see the 7-2 Seattle Seahawks travel south to take on the 7-2 Los Angeles Rams in a battle not just for the lead in the NFC West, but a matchup of two of the best teams in the league.
And a game that could go a long way towards determining the No. 1 seed in the conference.
There are few ways you could make the case this is the Game of the Week, or at least one that should get a bigger audience. Yes, the Lions versus the Eagles stands out, but that is also on Sunday Night Football. Buccaneers versus Bills is another solid game, but that comes in the early window on Sunday.
Seahawks versus Rams is a meeting of two of the best teams in the league, at least in terms of Offensive and Defensive Expected Points Added:
It has also been termed the “DVOA Bowl:”
The Seahawks lead the NFL in Total Defense-adjusted Value Over Average, while the Rams check in at #2.
This is also a game featuring a pair of MVP candidates in Matthew Stafford and Sam Darnold. According to the most recent MVP odds at FanDuel, Stafford is a co-favorite along with Drake Maye at +300, while Darnold is a few spots back at +900.
Again, this could be one of the biggest games of the season.
Too bad more fans will be unable to see it.
Unless there is an Elephant and Castle nearby …
