18 game season proposal, players only play 16

[ninotoreS]

I'm picturing a row of old billionaire white men sitting on stools, milking fat dairy cows so hard that they're squirting blood.

[Cult of Dionysus]

Absolutely terrible bleep idea!

What they should do is add a 2nd bye week and make the NFL regular season extend over 18 weeks. This would give the NFL one more week of football on the networks (read more $$$) while requiring NFL teams to only play 16 games. Having a 2nd by week would also allow the league to balance out rest weeks (right now some teams get their Bye in week 4 or 5, while others get it in 12 or 13) and also allow the NFL to have both Thursday night teams come out of a bye.

Just brilliant. More money, more rest, great Thursday night games with fully rested teams. Everyone wins!

[Pac_Eddy]

Meanwhile the Sleeper App would account for this and start allowing conditional lineup submissions. That would be rad to be able to submit your starting lineup, and also submit backup players that automatically swap in due to pre-kickoff deactivations.

The teams would have to announce which players are playing and which are sitting ahead of time, much like they do with injury reports. This is so people with inside info can't gamble or sell that info.

[Shoreline Steamers]

Not at all saying I'm in favor of the idea. But playing devil's advocate, the NBA and MLB (maybe NHL? I don't follow hockey) already basically do this as a matter of course. Both of those sports have ridiculously long regular seasons, and there are points during the year where they give their star players a game or two off to save them from the rigors of playing as many games as they do.

On the surface this appears to be the NFL's idea to try and shorten the pre-season, which fans and season ticket holders hate paying full price for, by adding a couple of extra games to the regular season that actually count towards the standings. It's a compromise, and while not perfect isn't totally insane.

Granted, it's guaranteed to be viewed as a cash-grab by ownership which isn't totally off the mark. But it's also an attempt to placate the NFLPA in the upcoming negotiations by reducing the preseason games (which they hate), but also not requiring all players to increase their game participation from 16 to 18 regular season contests.

Is it perfect? No. But it might just check a lot of boxes on the sides of both players and management with regard to addressing the problem of the NFL pre-season as it currently exists. I'd want to see more specifics as to how this would actually work before weighing in one way or the other about its impact on the game.

[FantasyFreak]

I'm picturing a row of old billionaire white men sitting on stools, milking fat dairy cows so hard that they're squirting blood.

Mark Cuban foresaw an NFL 'implosion' of greed. Now, he says, it's 'accelerating.' A little over three years ago, Mark Cuban created a stir when he predicted that an NFL “implosion” was only 10 years away because “pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered.

[Friction]

Absolutely terrible bleep idea!

What they should do is add a 2nd bye week and make the NFL regular season extend over 18 weeks. This would give the NFL one more week of football on the networks (read more $$$) while requiring NFL teams to only play 16 games. Having a 2nd by week would also allow the league to balance out rest weeks (right now some teams get their Bye in week 4 or 5, while others get it in 12 or 13) and also allow the NFL to have both Thursday night teams come out of a bye.

Just brilliant. More money, more rest, great Thursday night games with fully rested teams. Everyone wins!

I have always liked this idea. TNF quality and the shortened weeks for most teams is an issue. The timing of some bye weeks also.

[FantasyFreak]

Fantasy playoffs Giants are out of it yep let's bench Barkley his final 2 games keep him fresh for the off-season. I see it now

It's nuts. This idea is clearly based on money. It's pure greed. They claim the pre season product is watered down, but want to water down the regular season instead? Crazy. They are overwhelmed with greed, and must think nothing of their fanbase. Due to gambling, this will be a problem, not Joe six pack. Seriously, it's nuts. What other sport caps their top players starts in a season. Cuban was right about the NFL. They are overwhelmed with greed.

[TheNuts]

The NFL wants a team in London. That is so damn asinine, that it just shows the pure greed. Steady quality growth is good. Rash decisions to force more revenue is not a good idea for the long term picture.

Think of the NFL like Chik Fil A, the NFL has a short season with only 16 games. What does the limited season do? It has all of us absolutely jonesing for football. I never hear anyone I know craving baseball like us football fans crave football.

Extending to 18 games, extending the playoffs, putting a team in London (guarantee that team will always be terrible), all of that dilutes the drug that we call professional football. As much as I want more football, I'm emotionally spent by the time the season ends. That's how much energy I put into this sport.

[MEuRaH]

The NFL wants a team in London. That is so damn asinine, that it just shows the pure greed. Steady quality growth is good. Rash decisions to force more revenue is not a good idea for the long term picture.

Think of the NFL like Chik Fil A, the NFL has a short season with only 16 games. What does the limited season do? It has all of us absolutely jonesing for football. I never hear anyone I know craving baseball like us football fans crave football.

Extending to 18 games, extending the playoffs, putting a team in London (guarantee that team will always be terrible), all of that dilutes the drug that we call professional football. As much as I want more football, I'm emotionally spent by the time the season ends. That's how much energy I put into this sport.

Couldn't have said it any better myself.

[ArrylT]

Hockey fans have as much craving for hockey as football fans do football - and hockey is played from October through June - you can trust me on that.

[Friction]

Hockey fans have as much craving for hockey as football fans do football - and hockey is played from October through June - you can trust me on that.

Very very true.

[TheNuts]

Hockey fans have as much craving for hockey as football fans do football - and hockey is played from October through June - you can trust me on that.

Yes they do. I'm talking about fandom for my local team, the Bears, and on top of that, my rabid dedication to the fantasy side of it. If I was just a fan but didnt play fantasy, then I wouldn't be putting nearly as much into the sport.

[Huh]

I can’t wait to buy my tickets and surprise miss Barkley or Mahomes because that is a week that they sit. Fun

[Pac_Eddy]

I think the NFL owners might be pushing this as a political ploy ahead of the CBA negotiations. The union and fans will resist, then they'll give it up in exchange for something they really want.

But they're also greedy, so it may be about squeezing every dollar out regardless of the affect on the game.

[Friction]

I can’t wait to buy my tickets and surprise miss Barkley or Mahomes because that is a week that they sit. Fun

This is exactly one of the big downfalls, for fans. Vegas/gambling world has too large of an influence for them not to require the inactives on a weekly basis, but for those who purchase tickets a few weeks or months in advance. Greed