The story of the television schedule for Week 9 of the 2017 NFL season is shaping up to be a handful of prime-time matchups the NFL probably wishes it could flex out of the national broadcasts.
For instance, though the Buffalo Bills (somehow) have one of the better records in the AFC at 5-2, few people want to see them take on the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football, especially if it means another Color Rush monstrosity like this:
Prime-time games don't look much better for Sunday night and Monday night, blocks that respectively feature the struggling Oakland Raiders and Miami Dolphins and the 3-4 Detroit Lions against an Aaron Rodgers-less Green Bay Packers team.