As if they don’t already play too many games, the NFL owners are going to give their players an 18th regular-season game.
Monday, on the “Pat McAfee Show,” ESPN NFL analyst Adam Schefter broke the news that the NFL continues to move forward with the plan, including an 18-game regular season schedule.
“If we go back to when the conversation of more games (more than the 16-game schedule) started, the NFL started out of the block talking about 18 games, and it sounded like that was roundly dismissed. I think the league did a pretty smart thing. They went from 16 to 17 games. Rather than taking one big giant step, they said, let’s take little steps, and we will get to where we are going over time. But it is not going to be as quickly as we would like it to be.”
And now that Joe Burrow is even talking about the 18 games? To me it just seems like there is a momentum to this. I don’t think it is real right now, but it is only a matter of time before it does get real. And when you get to the 18 games, in my mind, it’s going to be about money. It’s always going to be about the money.”
The players had their opportunity in March 2020 to vote down the 17-game schedule. But in a very close vote the extra game received 51.5% approval (1,019 to 959) from players.
In 1978, the NFL moved away from an absolutely horrible six-game preseason schedule, cutting it by two games. Instead, they launched a 16-game regular season schedule.
The NFL minimum base salary for a rookie will be $795,000 in 2024, up from $750,000. All first-round selections receive four-year deals, with a fifth-year team option.
The players are to blame as well. They should negotiate for their health, not merely always more money. So, there will be an 18th game added whenever the owners put the deal together.
It will add at least one more week to the season because the teams may insist on being given a second bye week. Also, get ready for it. The owners will also work in more atrocious, unfair scheduling of games on more nights of the week.