NFL owners reportedly now will push for 17-game schedule, not 18

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Adding to the NFL regular season is an issue that won’t go away easy.

Earlier this year, the buzz was that owners would push the union to move to an 18-game regular season. Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic, citing ownership sources, said the plan is now to ask for an expansion to 17 games instead.

Kaplan said his source said there wasn’t enough support for an 18-game schedule from the owners and “players would not go for it either.” The physical toll of a 16-season is brutal on players, and more games would be a clear detriment to player safety.

The next collective-bargaining agreement talks could be difficult and drawn out. Before anything is settled there are sure to be plenty of negotiating ploys floated through the media. The expansion of the regular season could be a ploy, or perhaps it’s an issue the owners will dig in on.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nfl/nfl-owners-reportedly-now-will-push-for-17-game-schedule-not-18/ar-AAHSZsk?li=BBnba9I

[exboyfil]

1. Just no

Enough injuries already. I was wonder if they couldn't open the weekly schedule more by having Tuesday (Wednesday) games structured with the bye week and a Thursday game.

An example

Sunday 10/3
Bye 10/10
Tuesday 10/12
Thursday 10/21
Sunday 10/31

It might make the Thursday games better as well. It gives you another 8 primetime games a year or so.

[qazplm135]

2. alternatively why not a Friday night game?

Players get an extra day, it's still primetime, and then they still get extra days off?

Or even a Saturday night game maybe?

Thursday is just too close to Sunday for the health of the players.

But I also agree with you that you should schedule a Thursday night game for each team around a corresponding bye the week before.

That way they play Sunday, then bye, then Thursday, then Sunday.
Pair the teams so that they get the bye.

Make the first Thursday night game week 5 (after the week 4 bye).

[exboyfil]

3. Conflict with High School and College football

My approach doesn't give the players a full bye week, but it does ensure at least 7 days between games (with the exception of MNF). You are right about the Sunday to Thursday. At a minimum the Thursday games should be coordinated with byes for the two teams competing.

[qazplm135]

7. why would the NFL care?

I don't think that's going to significantly lower viewership.

But if we are stuck with Thursday, yeah pair up the byes prior Sunday with that Thursday and that definitely solves this problem.

It does mean that you can't have Thursday night football the first four weeks so it's probably a no-go for the NFL.

[JonLP24]

9. NFL agreed not to compete against high school & college

In order to not violate antitrust laws.

[underpants]

6. Funny colleges are now playing Friday night games

As I’ve always understood it there always an agreement with high schools not to detract from Friday night lights.

[RockRaven]

4. This is dumb. Right now, the schedule construction is perfect in terms of opponent selection.

32 teams, 2 conferences, 4 4-team divisions in each
2 games against the other 3 teams in your division = 6 games
one entire division in your conference = 4 games
one entire division in the other conference = 4 games
the equivalently division-ranked (based on past year's results - 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th) teams from the other two divisions in your conference = 2 games

That process is a predictable, non-arbitrary, and fair algorithm -- with no subjective judgment involved. Adding a 17th game is likely going to re-introduce a non-formulaic and unbalanced method of determining who plays who each year -- I remember back when there were 28 teams and 3 division of 5, 5, and 4, people used to bitch and moan constantly about the schedule makers favoring or disfavoring this or that team because of how unbalanced the selection of opponents was.

If they want to stretch the existing schedule to increase revenues, add a 2nd bye week and early or late Monday and/or Thursday games to milk more money from the TV side.

[qazplm135]

8. does it?

Couldn't you just then add the equivalently division ranked team from one of the other three divisions in the other conference?
It's the same criteria as your last criteria, just from the other conference.

[SWBTATTReg]

5. Who cares? NT