Mat Irby's Quick Slant
Chargers @ Chiefs, Sunday @ 8:20 PM On the western edge of Missouri, the noises of GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, the loudest outdoor venue in the world, hitch a ride on the wind over a small metropolis dolloped into the Midwestern plains. The roar of 70,000, huddled in the
Packers @ Lions, Thursday @ 8:15 PM Green Bay is the NFL’s Old Testament. The league’s roots grow from there – a lush maroon-brick stadium sprouts from a suburban neighborhood, its PA system inspiring the dreams of children sound asleep on school nights. The smell of brats augments sleepy, cold
Browns @ Broncos, Monday @ 8:15 PM The Broncos have been one of the NFL’s most pleasant surprises in 2024. Under HC Sean Payton, they’ve found a way to navigate a season that, for all intents and purposes, should have been a dead end. Strangled by cap issues after
49ers @Bills, Sunday @ 8:20 PM The forecast for Sunday is pure Buffalo—snowy and blustery, cold cutting through layers of down and wool. Amid the white flakes of an after-dark snow shower illuminated by halogen, Highmark Stadium will be alive under a sea of royal blue and red, breathy
Raiders @ Chiefs, Friday @ 3:00 PM In the autumn of 1959, Lamar Hunt paced his office. Professional football – a sport he loved – was growing, but the NFL had turned its back on him. When he proposed bringing a team to Texas, the league's owners scoffed at this naive
Ravens @ Chargers, Monday @ 8:15 PM If Shakespeare wrote a rivalry, it would be that of the Harbaugh brothers. King Jim: O younger brother, thou hast seized the crown that eludes mine grasp. Whilst I toiled, longing for triumph, thou didst snatch from me what fate denied. Blood of my
Eagles @ Rams, Sunday @ 8:20 PM The Rams will face a formidable opponent on Sunday night. The Eagles, at 8-2, have emerged as one of the NFL’s most complete teams. Their slow start now feels like a stellar remnant as the Eagles have become a team without weakness, piloted
Steelers @ Browns, Thursday @ 8:15 PM When the All-American Football Conference folded after the 1949 season, the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and Baltimore Colts merged into the NFL, and the Browns were dropped into the American Division along with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Browns had been the only champion