You may have noticed that Week One of the 2021 season has 4:25 p.m. ET games on both CBS and FOX. That’s not a typo or an accident.
In Week One, both CBS and FOX have games in the coveted late-afternoon window. That same thing has occurred in recent years during Week 17, which will shift to Week 18 in 2021.
In the past, the double doubleheader in Week 17 resulted in eight CBS doubleheaders and eight FOX doubleheaders. With 18 weeks and a double doubleheader to end the season, there are 17 Sundays with late-afternoon windows.
So by having a Week One double doubleheader, there won’t be an odd number of doubleheaders. CBS still has eight, FOX still has eight, and the two networks have a double doubleheader to start and end the season.
This gives fans more football in Week One, with Packers-Saints (or Broncos-Giants) broadcast nationally on FOX and Browns-Chiefs (or Dolphins-Patriots) broadcast nationally on CBS.