NFL Schedule 2011: 8 Best Sunday Night Football Games on Schedule

Sunday Night Football has become Americans' favorite time of the week, earning some of the highest ratings in the nation during the NFL's regular season. 

The Sunday Night Football crew on NBC has focused primarily on the game at hand (where ESPN's Monday Night Football focuses on the drama behind it), and this has helped to make SNF one of the most exciting weekly television "shows" in the business. 

The 2011 NFL schedule boasts a ton of marquee games on NBC's Sunday Night Football, most of them including some of the top teams in the league. 

Here are eight of the best Sunday Night Football games on the 2011 NFL schedule.

8. Indianapolis Colts at New Orleans Saints

Nearly two years ago, the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints matched up in one of the better Super Bowls of the decade. 

Seven months ago, both teams were booted on Wild Card weekend. 

Both of these teams have a lot to prove—the Saints have to prove that their Super Bowl win against the Colts was no fluke and that they can hang among the league's elite for years, as opposed to once every other year. 

The Indianapolis Colts have to prove that their undying leader, Peyton Manning, isn't on the downside of his career and, even if he were, the Colts would still be an elite team. 

Not much has changed between these two since their Super Bowl matchup; the Colts are now as healthy as they were then, and the Saints may be as hungry, too. 

7. Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers, Week 9

In case you guys didn't know, every time the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers play, it's damn near a bloodbath. 

Both teams hate each other and will hit the opposing offensive players with reckless abandon. With characters like Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, James Harrison and Troy Polamalu, things are definitely going to get ugly.

The scores are generally never high between these two—they rely primarily on field position and field goals after long, drawn-out drives.

But the passion is clearly visible. Every hit is 10 times harder and every ball is carried 10 times tighter. Ben Roethlisberger and Joe Flacco both act as game managers who can hit fast receivers deep for huge plays, and both of them are easy targets for the opposing defense.

It's what NFL football is about: hard hits, harder running and passion times 10.  

6. New York Jets at Baltimore Ravens, Week 4

The New York Jets found that their biggest shortcoming against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC title game was their toughness. 

The Steelers were far more physical and threw the Jets around like rag dolls. 

Of course, the New York Jets will be playing the Baltimore Ravens, but is there much of a difference anymore?

The Ravens like to get hit and hit back harder. Ray Lewis (even at the age of 36) can pack in a monster hit, while Ed Reed and Tom Zbikowski are attentitively monitoring the secondary. Let's not forget about Terrell Suggs, either, who lines up at linebacker, looking for blood as much as Lewis does. 

The Jets have added Plaxico Burress to their squad in order to boast a better, tougher offense, and this may work, depending on if the Jets have the right mindset: Don't get punked, because the Ravens will do exactly that.

5. Pittsburgh Steelers at Indianapolis Colts, Week 3

Peyton Manning vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers defense. 

I'm not sure more has to be said; however, because I love talking and writing incessantly, I'm going to say more, anyway. 

The Steelers' ideology is the exact opposite of that of the Colts': They run the ball often, pass when necessary and let the defense shoulder the load as often as possible. 

The Colts' ideology? They never run the ball, they pass often and they let Manning shoulder the load as often as possible. 

I'm not going to give the Indianapolis Colts much of a chance to beat the Steelers, but I do know that this game will be close. Whenever Manning is playing for your team, you have a chance, even against one of the most aggressive, physical, head-hunting defenses this game has ever seen.

Reggie Wayne may be a step slow, but if you're Manning, you can do just fine throwing to the kid you saw in the stands wearing Wayne's jersey. 

4. New England Patriots at New York Jets, Week 10

The New England Patriots and New York Jets don't like each other. 

While the Jets use trash-talk to motivate themselves, they also tend to hate on the Patriots a lot. They like to make Tom Brady jokes (who doesn't?) and they love trying to find things they can poke fun at. They make guarantees often and give credit never (except when they're playing the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2011 AFC Championship Game).

This year figures to be no different.

The New England Patriots now have resident loud-mouth Chad Ochocinco to keep the motor mouth derby running, for sure, and the Jets won't stop firing back. Add Albert Haynesworth, and you're looking at a game consisting of Rex Ryan, Ochocinco, Haynesworth, Plaxico Burress, Bart Scott and Darrelle Revis.

Talk about characters.

The game itself should be awesome. The Patriots entirely relied on Brady last postseason—an approach that seems to have failed, as it should with any team. Now, though, they have disgruntled wide-out Randy Mo—I mean, Chad Ochocinco—and big-contract bust Haynesworth, who can be the best defensive lineman in the NFL whenever he wants to be (which is almost never).

The New York Jets didn't add much to cover Ochocinco, but Revis has had enough success against him to shut him up; the Jets' offensive line should have no trouble with the often lethargic Haynesworth.

Basically, we're back to square one, which means we could see a game like we did in January.

Which, in turn, means this game should be really fun.  

3. Philadelphia Eagles at Atlanta Falcons, Week 2

The Philadelphia Eagles are pretty much the NFL's "dream team," thanks to the acquisitions of Vince Young, Nnamdi Asomugha, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Cullen Jenkins and Jason Babin. 

The Atlanta Falcons were one of the best team last year and still have all of that team intact. 

The Eagles are going to get a ton of press after making some noise in free agency, but the Falcons should show the world that this team isn't exactly unbeatable. Michael Turner's hard running and Matt Ryan's superb game-management skills should throw the Eagles offense off track. 

Regardless, both teams are going to give us a show. 

The Falcons were relatively explosive on offense, and the Eagles were the most explosive offensive team last season, thanks to Michael Vick's improved play and the receiving corps of Jeremy Maclin, DeSean Jackson and Jason Avante. 

And, oh yeah, Vick returns to Atlanta again. 

2. Indianapolis Colts at New England Patriots, Week 13

Back in the day, the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts put up one of the best rivalries in the game. 

Nowadays, things have changed. The Patriots are no longer the hated empire, after losing three straight playoff games, and the Colts fell far in 2010 after a Super Bowl run a year prior. 

Regardless, both Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are still playing at high levels, and the team that surrounds them generally never matters. 

Both players can shoulder the load but can just as easy defer when needed. The Colts can't stop Brady, and the Pats can't stop Manning (anymore). 

Though this game may or may not have the implications it did in, say, 2007, it still is entertaining to watch when the two best quarterbacks of the decade go at it.

1. Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons, Week 5

The Green Bay Packers surprised a lot of people (read: people who shallowly follow football) when they took out the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Divisional round. 

The Packers did more than just "take them out." They also wiped their behinds with the Falcons' faces, and put Matty Ice on "freeze." (Bad joke?)

This game wasn't a contest, and the Falcons were utterly disappointed in themselves. 

The Falcons figure to come back with a vengeance, looking to exact revenge on the Super Bowl champs to redeem their awful loss. They'll come in hungry and NFL fans will come away feeling full from all the great football they'll see as a result.