Some 2008 Football Season Information – Prepare Yourself for the Giant!
The 2008 football season is scheduled to begin on September 4. The new season will also bring various firsts with it. Let’s look at the 2008 football season schedule and changes so that you are better prepared for the Big Day(s).
The 2008 football season will be the 89th season of the National Football League, the major professional American football league in the United States, themed with the slogan ‘Believe in Now’. The Super Bowl championship game for this season, Super Bowl XLIII, is scheduled to be played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on February 1, 2009.
The regular season is set to begin on September 4 when the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants host the Washington Redskins in the NFL Kickoff game. The season will conclude with the 2009 Pro Bowl on February 8, 2009.
Schedule
In addition to the kick-off game to officially begin the season, there will be various featured games during the opening week include the NBC Sunday Night Football game between the Chicago Bears and the Indianapolis Colts, and two Monday Night Football contests. Meanwhile, the traditional Thanksgiving Day games will be held on November 27, with the Detroit Lions hosting the Tennessee Titans.
In preseason games, the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game is set for August 3 between the Indianapolis Colts and Washington Redskins. On April 3, the league revealed the other preseason games which includes the first game of the Toronto Series, which will be played August 14 between the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 2008 season is the third season of the use of the ‘flexible scheduling’ for Sunday games starting with Week 11
This will be the second consecutive season that the league will play at least one regular season game outside the United States as part of its International Series. The contest between the San Diego Chargers and the New Orleans Saints will be played at Wembley Stadium in London on October 26.
Rule Changes
- One defensive player will be allowed to wear a radio similar to the one worn by the quarterback to communicate with the coaching staff.
- The “force-out” rule on catches made near the sidelines has been eliminated.
- The 5-yard incidental grabbing of the face mask penalty has been eliminated.
- Teams that win the opening coin toss now have the option to defer the decision until the start of the second half.
- Field goal attempts that bounce off the goal post can now be reviewed under instant replay.
- Legal forward hand offs that touch the ground and attempted snaps when the ball hits the ground before the quarterback touches it are now considered fumbles.
Some other newbies
- New logo
- New stadiums
- Kansas City Chiefs and Lamar Hunt
- Tim Russert
- This will be the first season that the league will use a new, updated logo. Unveiled on August 31, 2007 in USA Today, the new design features eight white stars, representing each of the league’s eight divisions, instead of 25 on the old logo.
- This will be the first season that the Indianapolis Colts will play their home games at Lucas Oil Stadium.
- On January 31, 2008, Clark Hunt, chairman of the board for the Kansas City Chiefs announced that henceforth the team’s Lamar Hunt/American Football League tribute patch that was introduced in the 2007 season will be a permanent part of the Chiefs’ uniform.
- Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson has lent his support to proposals put forth by New York’s congressional delegation to rename a portion of U.S. Route 20 that leads to Ralph Wilson Stadium in honor of the late Tim Russert, an NBC News host who was a noted Buffalo Bills fan.
2008 Football Season Tickets
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