NFL turned down 1 big schedule request from Bengals

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) walks the sideline in the fourth quarter of the NFL Week 12 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Paul Brown Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Sunday, Nov. 28, 2021. Mandatory Credit: Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

It’s not often that a specific NFL team volunteers to be a guinea pig for an aspect of the regular season schedule, but that is precisely what the Cincinnati Bengals did prior to the 2023 schedule release.

NFL vice president of broadcast planning Mike North revealed Friday that the Bengals volunteered to play in the league’s first-ever Black Friday game. The Bengals were eager to make playing on Black Friday a tradition, but the NFL decided to go in a different direction.

“The Cincinnati Bengals raised their hand, they put their hand up and said, you know what, we’re interested in Black Friday not just in 2023, but how about as a tradition? We play in Dallas and Detroit on Thanksgiving every year, how about playing in Cincinnati on Black Friday every year?” North told Adam Schein on SiriusXM Mad Dog Radio.

North admitted that the league considered pitting the Bengals against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but ultimately opted to put the game in New York.

Credit to the Bengals for trying to carve out their own tradition. One would not expect teams to be eager to volunteer for something like this, but they did, even if they did not get the nod.