The NFL schedule controversy has been put to bed. The NFL announced Friday afternoon that the Jets and Titans will now kick off at 1 p.m., rather than 4:15 p.m., which allows Jewish Jets fans to avoid conflict with the Yom Kippur holiday that starts at sundown on September 27th.
"By changing the time of the Tennessee game from 4:15 p.m. to 1 p.m., the NFL has provided the best compromise to resolve our scheduling conflict," said Jets owner Woody Johnson in a statement. "I want to thank Commissioner Goodell and Howard Katz for quickly responding to our request to accommodate our fans of Jewish faith."
It was the logical solution to a problem that should have been avoided in the first place. The NFL acted quickly and appropriately, and now we can forget about it for another five months.
The move alleviates the key problem of the day, but creates an unusual situation. The Giants game in Tampa will remain at 1 p.m., which means that the two teams will be playing at the same time on television. That just doesn't happen, other than games featuring the Jets against the Giants, so it will be an interesting day this September.
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com.
