Thursday Night Money

NFL owners scored a bonanza when they negotiated with CBS to broadcast eight games on Thursday night. The winning bid was between $250-300 million. It will mean about $8 million per team. The NFL network will broadcast the rest of the schedule and simulcast the ones with CBS.

The contract is only for next season. The league would like to get the other bidders involved in the future. Fox, ABC, ESPN, TBS and NBC Universal all wanted a piece of the action. It's easy to see why. During recent years, 34 of the top 35 rated Thursday night shows were NFL games.

There are those who say there is not enough time between games for players to recover. They have a valid point, but Thursday Night Football has an excellent track record when it comes to viewer ratings. In the end, it's all about the money.