Patriots

Bills

Dolphins

Jets

Bengals

Ravens

Steelers

Browns

Colts

Titans

Jaguars

Texans

Broncos

Chiefs

Raiders

Chargers

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AFC teams: West, North, South, East

Cowboys

Giants

Eagles

Redskins

Bears

Lions

Packers

Vikings

Falcons

Panthers

Saints

Buccaneers

Cardinals

Rams

Seahawks

49ers

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NFC teams: West, North, South, East

The2007 NFL season was the 88thregular season of theNational Football League (NFL).

Regular-season play was held from September 6 to December 30. The campaign kicked off with the defendingSuper Bowl XLI championIndianapolis Colts defeating theNew Orleans Saints in theNFL Kickoff Game.

TheNew England Patriots became the first team to complete the regular season undefeated since the league expanded to a 16-game regular season in1978. Four weeks after theplayoffs began on January 5, 2008, the Patriots' bid for a perfect season was dashed when they lost to theNew York Giants 17–14 inSuper Bowl XLII, the league championship game atUniversity of Phoenix Stadium inGlendale, Arizona, on February 3.

For the first time, two divisions (theNFC East and theAFC South) had no team finish with a losing record.^{[note 1]}

The2007 NFL draft was held from April 28 to 29, 2007, at New York City'sRadio City Music Hall. With the first pick,the Oakland Raiders selected quarterbackJaMarcus Russell fromLouisiana State University.

John Parry was promoted to referee, replacingBill Vinovich, who was forced to resign due to a heart condition. Vinovich would then serve as a replay official from 2007 to 2011. He would later be given a clean bill of health and return to the field as a referee in 2012.

The following rule changes were passed at the league's annual owners meeting inPhoenix, Arizona, during the week of March 25–28:

• Theinstant replay system, used since the1999 season, was finally made a permanent officiating tool.^[1] Previously, it was renewed on a biennial basis.
• The system has also been upgraded to usehigh-definition technology. However, the systems atTexas Stadium (Dallas Cowboys), RCA Dome (Indianapolis Colts), andGiants Stadium (New York Giants and Jets) did not receive the HDTV updates since those stadiums were scheduled to be (and since have been) replaced in the forthcoming years.^[2] One reason that the technology was improved was that fans with high-definition televisions at home were having better views on replays than the officials and according to Dean Blandino, the NFL's instant replay director "that could have bit us in the rear if we continued [with the old system]." In addition, the amount of time allotted for the referee to review a play was reduced from 90 seconds to one minute.^[3]
• After a play is over, players who spike the ball in the field of play, other than in theend zone, will receive a 5-yarddelay of game penalty.^[3]
• Forward passes that unintentionally hit an offensive lineman before an eligible receiver will no longer be an illegal touching penalty, but deliberate actions are still penalized.^[3]
• Roughing-the-passer penalties will not be called on a defender engaged with a quarterback who simply extends his arms and shoves the passer to the ground.^[3]
• During situations where crowd noise becomes too loud that it prevents the offensive team from hearing its signals, the offense can no longer ask the referee to reset the play clock.^[3]
• It is necessary to have the ball touch the pylon or break the plane above the pylon to count as a touchdown. Previously, a player just had to have some portion of his body over the goal line or pylon to count a touchdown.^[4]
• A completed catch is now when a receiver gets two feet down and has control of the ball. Previously, a receiver had to make "a football move" in addition to having control of the ball for a reception.^[5]
• Players will be subject to a fine from the league for playing with an unbuckled chin strap. Officials will not penalize for chin strap violations during a game.^[5]

TheHall of Fame Game was played inCanton, Ohio, on Sunday August 5, 2007, with thePittsburgh Steelers defeating theSaints by a score of 20–7;^[6] the game was televised by the NFL Network, replacing NBC, who had been previously scheduled to broadcast theChina Bowl exhibition game fromBeijing, China on August 8, 2007, between theNew England Patriots and theSeattle Seahawks atWorkers Stadium. However, with all efforts being put into the London regular season game, plans for the game were postponed (then later cancelled completely) as Beijing hosted the2008 Summer Olympics.

Based on theNFL's scheduling formula, the intraconference and interconference matchups for 2007 were:^[7]

On March 26, 2007, the league announced the opening Saints–Colts Kickoff Game on September 6 that would be telecast onNBC. Pre-game activities featured Indiana nativeJohn Mellencamp,Billy Joel, andKelly Clarkson. The entertainment portion of events started 30 minutes earlier than the scheduled start time of the game, leading up to the unveiling of the Colts'Super Bowl XLI championship banner. The opening events were simulcast onNFL Network.

The Dallas Cowboys hostedthe New York Giants in the first Sunday night game September 9 at 8:15 p.m. US EDT.Monday Night Football onESPN kicked off with a doubleheader on September 10 withthe Cincinnati Bengals hostingthe Baltimore Ravens at 7:00 p.m. US EDT, and theSan Francisco 49ers hosting theArizona Cardinals at 10:15 p.m. US EDT. The 49ers paid tribute to three-timeSuper Bowl winning head coachBill Walsh, who died July 30, in that game.

In October 2006, NFL club owners approved a plan to stage up to two international regular season games per season beginning in 2007 and continuing through at least 2011.^[8] On February 2, 2007, the league announced that the Week 8 contest between theNew York Giants and theMiami Dolphins would be played atWembley Stadium in London on October 28 at 5 p.m.GMT, which was 1 p.m.EDT.^[9][10] As the Giants were the away-team designate from theNFC, Fox broadcast the game in the United States according to league broadcast contract rules.^[11]

In Week 9, theNew England Patriots (8–0) faced theIndianapolis Colts (7–0) in a battle of undefeated teams. Thus there was a lot of hype surrounding the game, also due to the fact that these teams had met in the previous season's AFC Championship game, and would possibly meet later in the 2007 AFC Championship game. Many people dubbed the game "Super Bowl 411⁄2".^[12] The Patriots prevailed 24–20,^[13] and would finish the regular season as the league's first 16–0 team.

For the second year in a row, three games were held on the United States'Thanksgiving Day (November 22). In addition to thetraditional games hosted by theDetroit Lions and Cowboys (with those teams respectively playing theGreen Bay Packers and theNew York Jets, with the Packers–Lions game starting at 12:30 p.m. US EST and the Jets–Cowboys game kicking off at 4:15 p.m. US EST respectively), the Colts faced theAtlanta Falcons in theGeorgia Dome, with kickoff at 8:15 p.m. US EST.

The NFL entered its second year of flexible scheduling in the final weeks of the season. In each of the Sunday night contests from Weeks 11 through 17, NBC had the option of switching its Sunday night game for a more favorable contest, up to 12 days before the game's start.^[14]

In addition to an extra week of flexible scheduling (because of the conflict with scheduling Christmas Eve the previous season, which NBC did not do (instead opting to air a game on Christmas Day), the NFL slightly changed its flex-schedule procedure. In 2006, the league did not reveal its predetermined Sunday night game; the reason given by the league was to avoid embarrassing the teams switched out for a more compelling game.^[15]In 2007, the league announced all predetermined matchups, with a footnote on the games subject to flex scheduling.^[16] Also, the network that carries the "doubleheader" week game (either CBS or Fox) will be able to switch one game per week into the 4:15 pm (USET) time slot, except in the final week, when NBC will select one game for the 8:15 pm slot, and both CBS and Fox will have doubleheader games on December 30.

Week 11:

• TheNew England–Buffalo game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET onCBS, was flexed intoNBC Sunday Night Football at 8:15 p.m. ET, replacing theChicago–Seattle game, which was moved to 4:15 p.m. ET onFox.
• TheNew York Giants–Detroit game, originally scheduled for 4:15 p.m. ET, was flexed to 1:00 p.m. ET on Fox.
• ThePittsburgh–New York Jets game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:05 p.m. ET on CBS.
• TheWashington–Dallas game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on Fox.

Week 12: TheDenver–Chicago game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on CBS.

Week 13: TheTampa Bay–New Orleans game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on Fox.

Week 14: The Pittsburgh–New England game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on CBS.

Week 16:

• The Washington–Minnesota game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET on Fox, was flexed into NBC Sunday Night Football at 8:15 p.m. ET, replacing the Tampa Bay–San Francisco game, which was moved to 4:05 p.m. ET on Fox.
• TheMiami–New England game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on CBS.

Week 17:

• TheTennessee–Indianapolis game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS, was flexed into NBC Sunday Night Football at 8:15 p.m. ET, replacing theKansas City–New York Jets game, which was moved to 4:15 p.m. ET on CBS.
• The Pittsburgh–Baltimore game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on CBS.
• The Dallas–Washington game, originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET, was flexed to 4:15 p.m. ET on Fox.

Within each conference, the four division winners and the top twonon-division winners with the best overall regular season records) qualified for the playoffs. The four division winners areseeded 1–4 based on their overall won-lost-tied record, and the wild card teams are seeded 5–6. The NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system, and there are no restrictions regarding teams from the same division matching up in any round. In the first round, dubbed thewild-card playoffs orwild-card weekend, the third-seeded division winner hosts the sixth-seed wild card, and the fourth seed hosts the fifth. The 1 and 2 seeds from each conference received afirst-round bye. In the second round, thedivisional playoffs, the number 1 seed hosts the worst-surviving seed from the first round (seed 4, 5, or 6), while the number 2 seed will play the other team (seed 3, 4, or 5). The two surviving teams from each conference's divisional playoff games met in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games, hosted by the higher seed. Although theSuper Bowl, the championship round of the playoffs, is played at a neutral site, the designated home team is based on an annual rotation by conference.^[18]

* Indicatesovertime victory

Jim Ringo

Ringo played 16 seasons in the NFL as a center with theGreen Bay Packers andPhiladelphia Eagles, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1981. He was a 10-time Pro Bowler, 9-time All-Pro selection, and 2-time NFL Champion. He died on November 19, age 75.

• Marquise Hill,New England Patriots defensive end, died on May 28, at the age of 24, drowned.^[19]

• Sean Taylor,Washington Redskins safety, died November 27 at the age of 24, homicide. Posthumously named to 2008 Pro Bowl.^[20]

TheNFLPA, then led by their presidentGene Upshaw and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, worked with player conduct in the form of suspensions for off the field conduct in light of the more than fifty arrests by local law enforcement since the start of the2006 season. The hardest hit came on April 10 whenAdam "Pacman" Jones of theTennessee Titans was suspended for the entire season for his five arrests, the most blatant while inLas Vegas for theNBA All-Star Weekend in February where he was accused of causing a riot/shooting in a strip club. That same day,Chris Henry of theCincinnati Bengals was suspended for the first eight games of the season for his run-ins with the legal system. The other big name that has been caught in the web of controversy was Falcons' quarterbackMichael Vick. Vick was charged on July 24, 2007, withdogfighting and animal abuse, and was suspended following a guilty plea in the case, on which he was sentenced to 23 months in prison (retroactive to November) and three years probation on December 10.^[21]

During the Patriots season opening game at The Meadowlands against the Jets, a Patriots camera staffer was ejected from the Patriots sideline and was accused of videotaping the Jets' defensive coaches relaying signals. The end result was that the team was fined $250,000, head coachBill Belichick was docked $500,000 (the maximum fine that could be imposed) and also stripped of their first round selection of the2008 NFL draft. If the Patriots had failed to make the playoffs, the penalty would have been their second and third round picks. The team was allowed to keep their other first-round pick acquired from theSan Francisco 49ers during the previous year's selection meeting.

• The NFL set an all-time attendance record in 2007, with the league's 32 stadiums attracting 17,345,205 paying customers during the regular season. Average per-game attendance was 67,755.^[22]
• The ESPNMonday Night Football game between the unbeaten New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens on December 3 drew the highest basic cable rating in history, with over 17.5 million viewers, beating the premiere ofDisney Channel'sHigh School Musical 2, which set the previous record on August 17. The previous high-water mark was aMNF telecast between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys on October 23, 2006, which drew over 16 million viewers.

The following teams and players set all-time NFL records during the regular season:

^a Hobbs' kickoff return was also, at the time, tied for the longest play in NFL history until Antonio Cromartie broke the record.

All-Pro Team

• Most points scored:New England, 589
• Fewest points scored:San Francisco, 219
• Most total offensive yards: New England, 6,580
• Fewest total offensive yards: San Francisco, 3,797
• Most total passing yards: New England, 4,731
• Fewest total passing yards: San Francisco, 2,320
• Most rushing yards:Minnesota, 2,634
• Fewest rushing yards:Kansas City, 1,248

^[35]

• Fewest points allowed:Indianapolis, 262
• Most points allowed:Detroit, 444
• Fewest total yards allowed:Pittsburgh, 4,262
• Most total yards allowed: Detroit, 6,042
• Fewest passing yards allowed:Tampa Bay, 2,725
• Most passing yards allowed:Minnesota, 4,225
• Fewest rushing yards allowed: Minnesota, 1,185
• Most rushing yards allowed:Miami, 2,456

^[36]

Offseason

The following teams hired new head coaches prior to the start of the 2007 season:

In-season

The following head coaches were fired or resigned during the 2007 season:

Offseason

The 2007 season was the last in theRCA Dome for the Indianapolis Colts, who had played there since1984. The franchise moved to the newLucas Oil Stadium in time for the 2008 season, located directly across the street. The dome would be demolished, and an extension to theIndiana Convention Center would replace the stadium.

Alltel Stadium reverts toJacksonville Municipal Stadium afterAlltel declines to renew the naming rights of theJacksonville Jaguars's home.

• This was the final season in which the classic NFL Shield logo, which had not changed since 1980, was used. An updated version first seen on August 31 inUSA Today was put into use starting with the2008 NFL draft in April.^[37] The new logo design features eight stars (one for each division) instead of the current 25 stars, the football now resembles that on the top of theVince Lombardi Trophy, given to theSuper Bowl champion and the lettering and point has been updated and modified to that of the league's current typeface for other logos.
• Teams that have permanent captains are allowed to wear a "C" patch (similar to those inice hockey) on their right shoulder. The patch is in team colors with four stars under the "C." A gold star is placed on a bar below the "C" signaling how many years (with a maximum of four years) that player has been captain. ThePittsburgh Steelers—who were using up two patches as it was for the season with their own logo (which was already part of the standard uniforms) and the team's 75th anniversary logo—andOakland Raiders elected not to use the "C" patch.
• The San Diego Chargers introduced new uniforms featuring white helmets, navy face masks, and revamped gold lightning bolts. A powder blue third jersey was also introduced.
• San Francisco 49ers coachMike Nolan and Jaguars coachJack Del Rio each wore suits on the sidelines for all of the teams' home games to honor Nolan's father, former 49ers and Saints coachDick Nolan. In 2006, both coaches were allowed to wear a suit on the sidelines for a maximum of two home games. Del Rio did not wear a suit in the September 16 game against the Falcons due to the extreme heat in Jacksonville that day. Nolan wore a suit at the Meadowlands against the Giants on October 21.
• The Washington Redskins celebrated their 75th anniversary season (the franchise having been founded in 1932 as the Boston Braves), and woreVince Lombardi-styled uniforms against the New York Giants on September 23. The Philadelphia Eagles and their cross-state rival Pittsburgh Steelers also celebrated their respective 75th seasons, having been founded in 1933. The Eagles wore replicas of their inaugural season uniforms against the Detroit Lions on September 23, while the Steelers wore 1960 uniforms against the Buffalo Bills on September 16 and did so again when the Baltimore Ravens visited on November 5.
• Throwback uniforms were not just limited to team anniversary celebrations. The Cleveland Browns wore their 1957 throwbacks in a game against the Houston Texans on November 25, the Minnesota Vikings wore 1970s uniforms against the Green Bay Packers on September 30 (in the same game thatBrett Favre passedDan Marino for most touchdown passes in NFL history), while the Jets honored their historic predecessors on October 14 against the Eagles and, in a rare instance, wore them in a road game at Miami December 2 by wearing the New York Titans' 1960 through 1962 uniforms. The team did not become the Jets until 1963. The Cowboys wore their 1960 uniforms on November 29 against the Packers, and the Bills wore their 1960s throwbacks at home against Dallas October 7 and against Miami December 9.
• The 49ers also honored the late Bill Walsh, coach of their wins inSuper Bowls XVI,XIX, andXXIII by wearing throwback uniforms from the 1980s in their opener on September 10 against the Arizona Cardinals. Mike Nolan had been considering wearing the 1980s uniforms for the entire season to honor Walsh's memory. The retro uniforms were worn again on November 18 against the Seahawks. In addition, all season long, the team wore a black football-shaped decal on their helmets with the initials "BW" in white.
• The Kansas City Chiefs honored their late former owner and team founderLamar Hunt by wearing specialAmerican Football League logo patches on their jerseys with the letters "LH" emblazoned inside the logo's football. Originally meant to be a one-season tribute, the Chiefs announced that as of the2008 NFL season, the patch will be a permanent fixture on the jerseys, joining the Chicago Bears (forGeorge Halas) and Cleveland Browns (forAl Lerner) for such memorial patches.

The 2007 season marked the second year under the league's television contracts with its American broadcast partners.CBS andFox primarily televised Sunday afternoonAFC andNFC away games, respectively.NBC broadcastSunday Night Football,ESPN airedMonday Night Football, andNFL Network held the rights toThursday Night Football.

The pre-game shows made some changes, with former Steelers coachBill Cowher joining hostJames Brown,Boomer Esiason,Shannon Sharpe andDan Marino on CBS'The NFL Today. On Fox, after one season on the road,Fox NFL Sunday returned to Los Angeles asCurt Menefee took over as full-time host.Chris Rose, who had been doing in-game updates of other NFL games, was reverted to a part-time play-by-play role.

The biggest changes were at NBC and ESPN.Michael Irvin's contract with ESPN was not renewed, and former coachBill Parcells returned to the network after four years as Cowboys head coach. Parcells left before the season ended to becomethe Miami Dolphins VP of Player Personnel. Another pair of former Cowboys,Emmitt Smith andKeyshawn Johnson also provided roles in the studio forSunday NFL Countdown andMonday Night Countdown. AtMonday Night Football,Joe Theismann was dropped (and would later resign from the network) after seventeen years in the booth between the Sunday and Monday Night packages, and formerPhiladelphia Eagles quarterback and currentPhiladelphia Soul (AFL) presidentRon Jaworski took his place alongsideMike Tirico andTony Kornheiser. Part of the reason that Jaworski replaced Theismann was because of his chemistry with Kornheiser onPardon the Interruption, where Jaworski was a frequent guest during the football season.

NBC'sFootball Night in America also made two changes.MSNBCCountdown anchorKeith Olbermann joinedBob Costas andCris Collinsworth as another co-host, whileSterling Sharpe exited as a studio analyst, and formerNew York Giants running backTiki Barber replaced him. In another change,Faith Hill took over singing "Waiting All Day For Sunday Night" forPink.

In the second year of the NFL Network's "Run to the Playoffs",Marshall Faulk andDeion Sanders replacedDick Vermeil for two games when Collinsworth was unavailable. An unforced change sawBryant Gumbel miss the Broncos–Texans game December 13 due to a sore throat and NBC announcerTom Hammond step into Gumbel's play-by-play role in what turned out to be more or less a preview of one of NBC's Wild Card Game announcing teams.

The dispute between the NFL Network and various cable companies involving the distribution of the cable channel continued throughout the season, getting the attention of government officials when the NFL Network was scheduled to televise two high-profile regular season games: the Packers-Cowboys game on November 29 and the Patriots-Giants game on December 29. In the case of the Packers-Cowboys game, the carriage was so limited that evenGovernor of WisconsinJim Doyle went to his brother's house to watch the game on satellite (which is where the majority of the viewers watch the network). The contest drew a network record 10.1 million viewers, a high-water mark at that time.

Some politicians urged the league to seek a resolution to conflict. In December,MassachusettsSenatorJohn Kerry wrote a letter to NFL CommissionerRoger Goodell asking for the league to settle their differences in time for the Patriots-Giants game. Because the game, as it turned out, would be the Patriots' attempt to seal the record that would make them the first undefeated team in 35 years, Kerry urged for a solution to be decided upon in time so that Americans can witness "an historic event".^[38] Also,Pennsylvania SenatorArlen Specter threatened to introduce legislation to eliminate the league's freedom fromantitrust laws.^[39]

On December 26, the NFL announced that, despite initial plans to broadcast the game only on the NFL Network, the game would be presented in a three-network simulcast with both CBS and NBC, the first time an NFL game would be broadcast on three networks, and the first simulcast of any pro football game sinceSuper Bowl I.^[40] Nielsen ratings saw CBS with 15.7 million viewers, NBC with 13.2 million viewers and NFL Network with 4.5 million viewers for the game. In addition, local stations in New York City (WWOR-TV in nearbySecaucus, New Jersey), Boston (WCVB-TV), andManchester, New Hampshire (WMUR-TV), all previously signed on to carry the game in the teams' home markets, added 1.2 million viewers, making it the most watched television show since the2007 Oscars and the most watched regular season NFL telecast in twelve years.

• Football Outsiders 2007 DVOA Ratings

• NFL seasons
• 2007 NFL season
• 2007 in American football

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