2015 NFL schedule: Top 10 must-watch games of the regular season
As much as we love every NFL game, they’re not all created equal.
Sure, we’ll watch the Tennessee Titans face the Jacksonville Jaguars (twice … gulp) but there’s a little more excitement for the marquee games on the 2015 NFL regular-season schedule.
With that, here are the 10 games that stand apart from the rest on this season’s slate, the top 10 must-watch games of the NFL regular season (all times Eastern):
10.* Tennessee Titans at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Week 1
Sept. 13, 4:25 p.m. (CBS)
This one gets an asterisk because of what might happen next week. Yes, these were the two worst teams in the NFL last season. But you wouldn’t be interested in seeing No. 1 pick Jameis Winston starting for Tampa Bay against No. 2 pick Marcus Mariota for the Titans in each player’s NFL debut? It’s on the list if the draft plays out like that. If not …
10. Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals, Week 17
Jan. 3, 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
It appears the 49ers could take a big step back, so the Seahawks need a new NFC West rival. How about the Cardinals? Arizona was really good before Carson Palmer’s injury last year. Maybe the Cardinals will get another shot to take the NFC West from the Seahawks in Week 17, and maybe they’ll be reasonably healthy this time around.
9. Buffalo Bills at Philadelphia Eagles, Week 14
Dec. 13, 1 p.m. (CBS)
This will be the Chip Kelly-LeSean McCoy Bowl after the Eagles traded McCoy this offseason, and McCoy has had some pointed things to say about his former team. But it’s also a really good game between two intriguing teams.
8. Indianapolis Colts at Pittsburgh Steelers, Week 13
Dec. 6, 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
When these two teams met last season, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had 522 yards and six touchdowns. These are two of the teams jostling for position to challenge the Patriots in the AFC, and this game could have big seeding implications. And a lot of passing yards, with Andrew Luck on Indianapolis’ side trying to match Roethisberger.
7. Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers, Week 14
Dec. 13, 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
Dez Bryant returns to the scene of the crime, when his fourth-down catch in the playoffs was overturned on replay review (ask a Cowboys fan, and “crime” would be the kindest word they use for that play). That was a classic game, and the two teams are more than capable of presenting another fun matchup.
6. New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins, Week 17
Jan. 3, 1 p.m. (CBS)
It’s a bit of a projection to call this a top-10 game. The Patriots have won the AFC East 11 times over the past 12 seasons, and maybe they run away with the division again. But the Dolphins did their best to at least make this finale interesting, including landing free-agent defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh this offseason. This would be a fantastic “Sunday Night Football” regular-season finale if the division title is on the line.
5 (tie). Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles, Week 2
Sept. 20, 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys, Week 9
Nov. 8, 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
DeMarco Murray’s revenge? The NFL’s reigning offensive player of the year couldn’t come to a contract agreement with the Cowboys, so the Eagles happily signed him. Murray or not, these games between these two rivals will go a long way in figuring out who wins the NFC East.
4. New England Patriots at Denver Broncos, Week 12
Nov. 29, 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
It seems like we’ve been saying “Enjoy this Tom Brady-Peyton Manning meeting, it might be the last!” for years, but then they both guide first-place teams and get scheduled against each other again the next season. This one will be in Denver, which Manning should like. The last three regular-season meetings have been in New England, with the Patriots winning all three. The one time Brady visited Manning in Denver was the 2013 AFC championship game. Denver won 26-16.
3. Seattle Seahawks at Dallas Cowboys, Week 8
Nov. 1, 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
These two teams turned in what might have been the best regular-season game in 2014, with the Cowboys upsetting the Seahawks in Seattle. This isn’t the same Cowboys team, without Murray, but it should still be a heck of a battle.
2. New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts, Week 6
Oct. 18, 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
The way the Patriots keep beating Andrew Luck’s Colts seems like … well, it seems like a few years ago when Manning’s Colts couldn’t get over the hump against New England. With Luck, the Colts are 0-4 against New England and each loss was by at least 21 points. If the Colts want to take the next step, they have to play better against the kings of the NFL, and they loaded up in free agency for that task. And don’t forget that the Patriots might come into this one with some bad feelings over the Colts’ role in the deflate-gate controversy last season.
1. Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers, Week 2
Sept. 20, 8:30 p.m. (NBC)
Think Green Bay might be fired up for this one? Forget about getting revenge for last year’s NFC championship game collapse, this is a monster game for the 2015 NFC race. If the Packers can win at Lambeau Field, maybe an NFC title game rematch in the playoffs would be in frigid Wisconsin. This is going to be a really fun game.
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
