Oct 7, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; A general view of the ESPN Monday night Football logo during the first half of the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and New Orleans Saints at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images.
In Week 13 — so about two weeks from now — the NFL is scheduled to showcase the Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos in primetime on Monday Night Football.
Cleveland is going nowhere fast, while the Broncos have a 6-5 record and are temporary owners of the seventh seed in the AFC playoff chase. And because the Browns drag down the quality of that matchup, plus the NFL’s relatively new primetime flex rules, some have whispered that the Minnesota Vikings could be flexed into Monday Night Football during their Week 13 showdown with the Arizona Cardinals at U.S. Bank Stadium.
The NFL, per its own rule-making, must flex the would-be matchup 12 days in advance, which would set the deadline at Tuesday, November 18th, or tomorrow for those reading this on the day of this article’s publication.
These are the sensible flex candidates:
Los Angeles Chargers vs. Atlanta Falcons
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Arizona Cardinals vs. Minnesota Vikings
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Baltimore Ravens
One might think the Vikings could be “off-limits” because the league already used a flex on Minnesota in Week 9, but that’s just a theory. No credible evidence suggests the Vikings are immune to a second flex.
Hilariously, the following week’s Monday Night Football matchup is not in play. The Dallas Cowboys will host the Cincinnati Bengals, and according to SI.com, it won’t be flexed.
Jay Morrison tweeted Monday, “For those asking, the Bengals-Cowboys MNF game is not eligible to be flexed out because of all the drawings, voiceovers and other work that has been done for The Simpsons alt-cast that will air that night.”
Star Tribune, too, confirmed the possibility of a Vikings flex last weekend. Ben Goessling wrote, “The Vikings’ Dec. 1 game against the Cardinals could be a candidate to move to Monday night as part of the NFL’s flexible scheduling process. The league has flexible scheduling rights for Monday night games after Week 12, and it seems plausible the Browns-Broncos game, a matchup of middling teams currently scheduled for Dec. 2, could be moved to Sunday.”
The Vikings have an 8-2 record through 11 weeks and next take on the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Sunday, November 24th.
Minnesota could have two MNF games in December, already scheduled to play the Bears at home on December 16th.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.