Week 16's Vikings-Packers game to remain noon CT kickoff

With a stake in the NFC North-title race likely on the line, the Green Bay Packers' rematch with the Minnesota Vikings on Christmas Eve appeared a possible flex-scheduling candidate. However, the NFL announced Monday that the game remains a noon kickoff local time.

Since the NFL instituted flex scheduling a few years ago, games of higher importance later in the season have moved out of their original kickoff times into the early evening and primetime slots in order to procure the largest national audience for the league's best product.

For Week 16, the NFL chose to flex out the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' NFC South showdown with the New Orleans Saints to 3:25 p.m. CT rather than the Packers' tilt with the Vikings.

The Packers have regularly seen their schedules change as a result of the policy. Most recently, their game against the Atlanta Falcons moved out of its original noon CT slot to 3:25 p.m. due to the magnitude of the contest.