"NFL's Expanded Flex Scheduling: Bears-Chargers on 'Sunday Night Football' Reveals League's Perspective"

The decision to keep the Chicago Bears vs Los Angeles Chargers game on "Sunday Night Football" despite both teams having losing records indicates that the NFL has set a higher standard for flex scheduling. While the league has expanded its flex options to include Monday and Thursday nights, the bar has been raised on what games will be flexed out. Networks can protect a game each week, and the league believes that moving a game out of prime time so far in advance means it won't become a better matchup in the coming weeks.