David Kronke: Fall TV: Will NBC even bother?

Let’s keep the moronic “Deal or No Deal� at 8 p.m.; it’s a good way to start the week, even if things may go downhill from there. “Medium� and “Crossing Jordan� (by necessity vacated from its Sunday timeslot), seem compatible programs, so let’s put them together.

Tuesday: The only lock here is “L&O: SVU� at 10. “Scrubs,� if it returns, would likely move to Thursday. So throw the requisite revolving-door series of dumb reality shows as eventual “American Idol� cannon fodder on at 8 and add the kidnapping show or “Black Donnellys,� which seems vaguely compatible to “SVU,� at 9.

Wednesday: A once-mighty evening for the network lies in shambles, with only the diminished “L&O� a likely returnee. The temptation here would be to put “Deal or No Deal� at 8, but here’s hoping NBC has something in development that won’t make that necessary. Sorkins’ show, “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip,� could return to his former “West Wing� timeslot, but “The Black Donnellys� would seem to be a better fit with “L&O,� although it’ll be in a tough time slot (opposite “Lost,� “Criminal Minds� and, in the second half of the season, the “American Idol� results show), but perhaps in can cash in on the “Crash� cachet. Or, perhaps the network could move “ER� to 9 p.m. Wednesday in an effort to find it a different audience or simply announce its death knell, and let “Donnellys� spruce up the former Must-See Thursday lineup.

Thursday: “My Name is Earl� and “The Office� lost a little steam when they were moved from Tuesday to Thursday last season, but they helped bolster a faltering evening that had once been prime-time TV’s most precious gem. Fey’s sitcom (at this point untitled) could appear here – though having two so-similarly themed series could be problematic – and “Scrubs� could enter the mix, or perhaps NBC is sitting on a couple of other genuinely promising sitcom pilots (although if the past decade is any indication, don’t count on it). At any rate, a new sitcom is imperative, and expect “ER� or, as previously noted, “Black Donnellys� or “Studio 60� to conclude the evening. (Placing Fey’s and Sorkin’s shows back-to-back as a compare-and-contrast for viewers? As bad movies everywhere say, it’s such a crazy idea it just might work. Keep in mind, though, TV shows about the media rarely click on network TV.)

Friday: Little that NBC does on this night seems to work, and the network has scaled back on “Dateline� as a placeholder. But “Deal or No Deal� has given the evening a boost, so schedule it, “Las Vegas� (anything the network would replace “Las Vegas� with on this evening would invariably fare worse) and move “L&O: Criminal Intent� to this evening – “SVU� fared well here (though it’s thriving even more on Tuesdays), and “CI� has a better chance at the Friday audience than “Conviction� did.

Saturday: Again, no one cares.

Sunday: I’ve heard NBC is going to remove “Dateline� from its 7 p.m. Sunday timeslot, but that doesn’t really make a lot of sense; what else would they put there? And assuming that the NFL games will start at 9 p.m. ET (as they did on Monday nights), that leaves an 8 p.m. bloc to fill. So, a few oddball ideas: “Conviction� or “ER� come here to resuscitate themselves or die, as “West Wing� did last year; a sitcom and a half-hour roundup of the day’s NFL action to lure viewers after the football overruns on Fox and CBS, or an hourlong NFL roundup. And leave the panicking for January.

“Conviction� and at least one of the aforementioned pilots probably won’t be on NBC’s fall lineup. But trying to nail down what the network’s schedule might look like any more than I already have makes my brain hurt. It likely makes Kevin Reilly’s brain hurt even more.