Pro Football Hall of Fame Game The first preseason game is on August 9, 2009 at 8:00 p.m. EDT on NBC. The Buffalo Bills will play the Tennessee Titans and both will wear "throwback" jerseys celebrating the two franchises American Football League origins. It is the first time since 1970 that the teams have not been from opposing conferences; also, both Bills owner Ralph Wilson, a 2009 Hall of Fame inductee, and Titans owner Bud Adams have owned their teams continuously since the AFL's inception in 1960, making them the longest-tenured team owners in the league. Both teams will be making their first Hall of Fame Game appearance since the 1980s ((Buffalo last played in Canton in 1989, Tennessee in 1985 as the former Houston Oilers) and I should add this game is the day before my bday... ~grins and bounces~)
NFL Kickoff Game and opening weekend The first game of the season is on Thursday, September 10, 2009, at 8:35 pm EDT, with the Super Bowl XLIII champion Pittsburgh Steelers hosting the Tennessee Titans at Heinz Field. The opening weekend game on NBC Sunday Night Football will feature the Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers. The opening weekend doubleheader games on Monday Night Football will both be part of the AFL 50th Anniversary celebration: Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots in the first game, and San Diego Chargers at Oakland Raiders in the second game.
International Series This year's game will be played October 25, 2009 at 1:00 pm EDT (5:00 pm local time in London) again at Wembley Stadium in London. The New England Patriots play the designated "home" team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. CBS will televise this game on a regional basis as the Patriots are the "visiting" team.
Thanksgiving Day games These games are on Thursday, November 26, 2009. Fox holds the rights to the 12:30 p.m. afternoon game, which will feature the Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions. Poor on-field performance and attendance have increased calls for the Lions to be replaced, particularly in 2008, but owners ultimately rebuffed these calls. The placement of the Packers, making their 19th Thanksgiving appearance against the Lions, was likely done to help the Lions Thanksgiving game garner higher ratings, with the Packers alone being one of the league's highest rating draws. The Dallas Cowboys will host the Oakland Raiders, at 4:15 p.m. EST on CBS, while the prime time NFL Network game, featuring the Denver Broncos hosting the New York Giants, is featured at 8:20 p.m. EST.
Bills Toronto Series The second regular-season game of the series, in which the Buffalo Bills play in the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, will feature the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football December 3. Earlier reports on a potential Bills-Toronto Argonauts doubleheader and reports of the league favoring other teams were proven inaccurate. No preseason game will be played in this series for 2009.
Christmas The league has scheduled a rare Friday night game on December 25, Christmas Day, in lieu of a Thursday night game that week. The game will also be part of the AFL Anniversary celebration and will feature the San Diego Chargers at the Tennessee Titans.
Pro Bowl: The 2010 Pro Bowl is on January 31, one week before Super Bowl XLIV, at the same site of the league championship game, Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. This is the first time since 1979 (1978 NFL season) that the Pro Bowl will be held in the Continental United States as opposed to Hawaii. The NFL also announced that the site and date of Pro Bowl games after 2010 will include playing the game on a rotating basis in Honolulu. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the move was made after looking at alternatives to strengthen the Pro Bowl and to make the end of the season more climactic. As a result of the move, players will not be allowed to play in both the Super Bowl and the Pro Bowl in the same year. In addition, ESPN will replace CBS as broadcaster, with kickoff scheduled for 8:05 pm EST.
----------------------------------------------------------------
This should bring some enjoyment in the mean time and when I get the full schedules for both preseason and regular season with times and all I will post them as well as get a ticker timer for all to see when the first football is kicked.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
edited to remove reference point I missed earlier... This is all quoted from Wikipedia and there reference point numbers like to hide... ~smirks and returns you all to your regularly scheduled withdrawl time~
