The NFL released its schedule for every team Thursday night, revealing conflicts with a few NASCAR Cup races — but not as many as it could have been.
The first conflict comes Sept. 9 when Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts the Cup regular-season finale at 2 p.m. ET. The Indianapolis Colts play their home opener against the Cincinnati Bengals at 1 p.m. ET.
“In a perfect world, we’d rather not be head-to-head at home,” Doug Boles, president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, told The Indianapolis Star. “But we knew we’d be head-to-head regardless, whether they were here or on the road. ... We just had our fingers crossed that it wouldn’t be the first year of the new date for the race.”
Other places where NASCAR and NFL compete nearby:
# Oct. 7 - NASCAR races at Dover International Speedway. The Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, who have a strong following in that region, are home to the Minnesota Vikings in a rematch of the NFC championship game that sent the Eagles to the Super Bowl. The race is at 2 p.m. ET. The game is scheduled for 4:25 p.m.
# Oct. 21 - NASCAR races at Kansas Speedway at 2 p.m. ET, and the Kansas City Chiefs are home to the Cincinnati Bengals at 1 p.m. ET.
NASCAR avoided conflicts a few other weekends.
The Charlotte Roval race is Sept. 30 and the Carolina Panthers have a bye that weekend.
The Texas race is Nov. 4 and the Dallas Cowboys play Nov. 5 in a Monday night game.
The Phoenix race is Nov. 11 and the Arizona Cardinals are on the road.
The season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway is Nov. 18. The Miami Dolphins have a bye that weekend.