NFL TV Schedule Week 11: Highlighting Most Entertaining Matchups

Week 11 of the 2013 NFL season offers fans a treat on Sunday night, as the Denver Broncos (8-1) host the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs (9-0).

That thrilling AFC West matchup is enough to get me excited for the week on its own, but it is not the only matchup to look forward to.

Week 11 is loaded with good matchups. Granted, some of them, like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-8) hosting the Atlanta Falcons (2-7) or the Houston Texans (2-7) hosting the Oakland Raiders (3-6), do not involve teams battling for playoff positioning, but the matchups are fairly even.

For this list, I'm going to focus on the matchups that figure to have playoff implications. The following three games should be supremely entertaining and should tell us a lot about the teams playing in the process.

First, have a look at when and where all of the week's games will be going down.   

Thursday, Nov. 14
Sunday, Nov. 17
Monday, Nov. 18
Game	Time (ET)	TV
Indianapolis at Tennessee	8:25 pm	NFL Network
Game	Time (ET)	TV
N.Y. Jets at Buffalo	1:00 pm	CBS
Atlanta at Tampa Bay	1:00 pm	FOX
Detroit at Pittsburgh	1:00 pm	FOX
Washington at Philadelphia	1:00 pm	FOX
Arizona at Jacksonville	1:00 pm	FOX
Oakland at Houston	1:00 pm	CBS
Baltimore at Chicago	1:00 pm	CBS
Cleveland at Cincinnati	1:00 pm	CBS
San Diego at Miami	4:05 pm	CBS
Green Bay at N.Y. Giants	4:25 pm	FOX
Minnesota at Seattle	4:25 pm	FOX
San Francisco at New Orleans	4:25 pm	FOX
Kansas City at Denver	8:30 pm	NBC
Game	Time (ET)	TV
New England at Carolina	8:40 pm	ESPN

Note: Team rankings and stats taken prior to Week 10's Monday night game. All stats via TeamRankings.com. 

San Francisco 49ers at New Orleans Saints

When: Sunday, Nov. 14 at 4:25 p.m. ET

TV: Fox

The San Francisco 49ers (6-3) will roll into the Superdome nursing their metaphorical and literal wounds from a 10-9 loss to the Carolina Panthers this past Sunday.

Meanwhile, the New Orleans Saints (7-2) are flying high after dismantling the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night 49-17. That game was also in New Orleans, and the Saints have a tendency to go for big points in the indoor Superdome. 

The Saints have scored at least 35 points in each of their past three home games, and Drew Brees and company looked as good as ever while posting 625 yards of offense against the Cowboys. 

Of course, moving the ball will not be as easy against the 49ers. 

San Francisco is ninth in passing defense, sixth in yards allowed per pass and third in opponents passing percentage.

It will be a treat to watch one of the league's best offenses go against one of the best defenses. On top of that, this game is vitally important to both teams. The 49ers trail the Seattle Seahawks by two game in the NFC West and can't afford to lose any more ground.

Meanwhile, the Saints lead the Carolina Panthers by just a game in the tight NFC South.  

Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos 

When: Sunday, Nov. 14 at 8:30 p.m. ET

TV: NBC

As good as the matchup we just talked about is, this is definitely the highlight of the week. After all, it will be Week 11 and these two have combined for just one loss. 

Adding to the intrigue of this matchup is that both of these teams play in the AFC West and this will be the first time they've met this year. In fact, the Broncos will be the first team with a winning record the Chiefs have faced this season. 

Beyond that, this matchup should be an entertaining one on its own.

This game pits Denver and NFL's highest scoring offense against the Chiefs and the NFL's stingiest defense (in terms of points). 

When the Broncos have the ball, it will be vital to protect Peyton Manning. The legend has been taking a lot of hits and has some bothersome ankles. However, he is expected to play: 

The Broncos will have to protect him against the league's leader in sack percentage. The Chiefs sack opponents on just over 10 percent of all pass attempts. 

Meanwhile, the Chiefs like to move the ball on the ground and feature the league's 12th-ranked rushing attack. They will do so against a Denver team that is second in the league by allowing an average of just 3.4 yards per carry.

New England Patriots at Carolina Panthers

When: Monday, Nov. 15 at 8:40 p.m. ET 

TV: ESPN

With a whale of a Sunday night game and this matchup on Monday night, Week 11 is set for a big finish. 

The New England Patriots (7-2) will enter this game off of a bye and do so after an offense that had been struggling a bit posted 55 points in a victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Chances are, Tom Brady and the passing offense will go back to struggling in this one. 

The Panthers (6-3) have been playing fantastic defense all season. Carolina is fourth in passing yards allowed and second in rushing yards allowed. 

The real key to this game, much like the Chiefs and Broncos game, will be how well the Patriots protect Brady. 

The Panthers have an outstanding defensive line. They are sixth in sack percentage. Meanwhile, the Patriots are 17th in sacked percentage.

It's not just about sacks, either. 

Brady needs the room to step up in the pocket to buy an extra second and get off a solid throw. 

Meanwhile, the Panthers will undoubtedly look to run the ball with their 10th-ranked rushing attack against a defense that is 22nd in yards allowed per rush and 30th in rushing yards per game.