Goodell wants to extend NFL season to 17 or 18 games

[channtheman]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/9374904/Goodell-wants-NFL-season-to-be-17-or-18-games

Does it make any sense to extend the length of the regular season when at the same time all these rules about player safety are being enforced? If you want to protect the players you don't want to make them go out there for 2 more games and give it their all. Makes no sense to me.

[Zool]

17 games makes no sense at all. 9 home and 8 road games for some. Opposite for others.

18 or nothing.

[Gunakor]

I'd vote to leave it as it is. For one thing, the coaches lose valuable evaluation time during the preseason to make decisions with the roster and starting lineups. Secondly, it opens a whole new argument for the players that they should get paid even more money based on the fact they are playing more games. Lastly, it would be a tremendous task for the rookies to transistion from a college schedule to a full 18 game professional schedule. To many negatives that seem to outweigh the one positive I can come up with here, that being that the fans don't have to suffer through a full boring month of preseason.

[Guiness]

17 games makes no sense at all. 9 home and 8 road games for some. Opposite for others.

18 or nothing.

He seems fond of the oversea/neutral site games. 8 home, 8 away, and one in Europe?

I guess extending the season is the natural way to increase revenue. Most or all of the stadiums are upgraded, luxury box revenue is maxed out, stadiums are mostly sold out. I don't know how much more money they can possibly squeeze out of the tv networks.

[Zool]

I just don't see the NFL growing into Europe. Maybe I'm wrong, but the NFLE was not exactly well received either.

[gbpackfan]

They should leave it as is. But since it's all about money, they won't. Good luck trying to convince the players to take less money after demanding that they play two additional games.

The NFL is going to end up ruining themselves. Every year, more rules, more expansion and more games.

[Guiness]

I just don't see the NFL growing into Europe. Maybe I'm wrong, but the NFLE was not exactly well received either.

ok, then they can have a season in that market they so desperately want, LA, without expanding! Different teams each week, which will appeal to those fickle SOBs!

[KYPack]

I just don't see the NFL growing into Europe. Maybe I'm wrong, but the NFLE was not exactly well received either.

I always got the feeling that the "master plan" was to expand into 4 huge world cities. London, Berlin, Mexico City and Tokyo. They could add 4 additional NA sites, Toronto, LA, Chicago and another.

Now, I think that plan was shelved when they blew up NFLE and canned all the Euro employees. London and Berlin would draw, the ex-Pat Americans and homegrown fans would take care of attendance.

I think they still like the 4 international sites, but really don't know how to get it done. Euro fans will pay to see NFL teams, but it doesn't seem like they will pay to see expansion or minor league talent.

Goodell's office released a statement last year that the SB might be played in London some day. I don't what the philosophy is now and i don't think they do either.

[Noodle]

No way do I like expanding the season to 18. This is stupid. Teams are already a collection of walking wounded by the time the playoffs roll around, and adding two more games will just make it worse.

Have longer seasons benefitted the NBA or the NHL?

And this pipedream of having outposts in far-off foreign lands is absurd. Travel time, lack of homegrown talent, lack of football infrastructure (HS/College), all indicate to me that this makes no sense at all.

You don't have to play the game to know it and appreciate it, but it does require immersion in the culture of Football, which I just don't think you can export.

[Fritz]

Cut one pre-season game, I say.

Hell, I remember the 14 game season.

[digitaldean]

Cut one pre-season game, I say.

Hell, I remember the 14 game season.

Ditto.

18 is idiotic. It's hypocritical to expand the season and then say you're concerned on player safety.

It's all part to get more money for the owners and the players. They already make us pay reg. season $$ for a glorified scrimmage (especially the last pre-season game).

Keep it at 16 and dump 1 pre-season game.

[Freak Out]

WTF? Is Gordon Gekko running the NFL now?

[cheesner]

Oh, come on now. The idea was to convert preseason games to regular season. It is still the same number of games. Although I understand that the starters don't play as much in the preseason, and they would be getting a greater workout.



Here is my idea. How about they make the season 20 games, but each player can only play in 16. They can add another 6-8 players to the roster, and there would be the same number of players available each week, its just that each player would have to designate 4 games each season that he would sit out. Instead of 5 inactives per week (or whatever) there would be 12.

Pluses: The football season would be extended a whole month. More football! Players would get more rests during the season. Teams would be able to cope with injuries better. More Football! Additional stategy makes a complex game even more interesting. Opportunities for the backups to get some game experience developing more stars. More football!

Minuses: Teams without much depth would lose games when their stars are sitting out. It would take a season or two of adjustment and competition may suffer in the short run but would be fine soon thereafter. Season ticket prices would go up with more games.

[Gunakor]

Oh, come on now. The idea was to convert preseason games to regular season. It is still the same number of games. Although I understand that the starters don't play as much in the preseason, and they would be getting a greater workout.



Here is my idea. How about they make the season 20 games, but each player can only play in 16. They can add another 6-8 players to the roster, and there would be the same number of players available each week, its just that each player would have to designate 4 games each season that he would sit out. Instead of 5 inactives per week (or whatever) there would be 12.

Pluses: The football season would be extended a whole month. More football! Players would get more rests during the season. Teams would be able to cope with injuries better. More Football! Additional stategy makes a complex game even more interesting. Opportunities for the backups to get some game experience developing more stars. More football!

Minuses: Teams without much depth would lose games when their stars are sitting out. It would take a season or two of adjustment and competition may suffer in the short run but would be fine soon thereafter. Season ticket prices would go up with more games.

It would make it tough for teams to gameplan against their opponents. Would drive coaching staffs crazy trying to prepare during the week.

What happens during the games when your only real NT has to sit out? Or your starting QB? No way this happens.

[Guiness]

add one plus - an opportunity for the Lions to go 0-18!