Goodell, owners discuss adding 17th game

[PosterChild]

By Alex Marvez

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has an idea to combat the declining interest in the NFL preseason: a 17th regular season game.

Goodell broached the subject at the owners' meeting on Tuesday in Atlanta. The basic premise would be to eliminate one preseason game, bringing that number down to three, and add on one regular season game.
Since most starters and veterans play sparingly the first few preseason games, the move would likely not have an impact on a team's ability to prepare for the regular season. With the odd number of regular season games, the conferences would alternate between its teams hosting nine games in a season and its teams hosting eight games.


The move could also have the added benefit of increasing league revenues, which might make it easier for players and owners to come to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement. On Tuesday, the owners opted out of the current labor deal, which means that the CBA now runs through 2010, not 2012. If no new agreement is reached, the 2008 and 2009 seasons would be played under the current terms, the 2010 season would be an uncapped year, and there would be no agreement covering the 2011 season.



http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/8162048/Goodell,-owners-discuss-adding-17th-game

 

[Eddie]

I'm up for a 17th game, but they gotta expand the rosters.

There are gonna be some seriously hurt and exhausted players come playoff (or layoff) time.

 

[Hostile]

Yuck.

I like the balance of 16 games and how it makes the schedule work.

 

[PosterChild]

I'm up for a 17th game, but they gotta expand the rosters.

There are gonna be some seriously hurt and exhausted players come playoff (or layoff) time.

I don't think the owners are in any mood for expanding rosters right now. But I understand your thinking...like to see it myself.

 

[PosterChild]

Yuck.

I like the balance of 16 games and how it makes the schedule work.

Yep, just make it 18.

 

[ZeroClub]

The regular season is already too long, IMO.

 

[dargonking999]

The regular season can never be to long for me. More football means more tense heart hurting days, and depressed, angry, lonely nights.

The more the merrier

 

[Duane]

How do you handle the uneven home and away games teams will have in a 17 game schedule? Play at a neutral site?

 

[Velvet Jones]

What it comes down to is that an extra game means extra income to the owners. They don't get much for pre season games. The catch 22 is going to be that players are going to want to get paid for that extra game.

 

[zrinkill]

I do not care what else they do ..... as long as they get a handle and put a serious cap on the rookie contracts.

That should be number one priority.

 

[big dog cowboy]

I love the idea of cutting out preseason games.

I hate the idea of a 17 week schedule.

 

[jobberone]

I'm for 18 if they take away two preseason games.

 

[Velvet Jones]

I, personally, don't understand the hate on for pre season games. If you don't want your starters to get hurt, don't play them.

I am agianst the 17 week schedule for the same reason I am agianst expanding the league even more than it is or having more teams make the playoffs. You start to get a watered down version of the NFL.

 

[UKCowboysFan]

How do you handle the uneven home and away games teams will have in a 17 game schedule? Play at a neutral site?

This had been mentioned in the UK some time ago.

The thought is that the 17 game will be played on a neutral venue, with some of them being played as part of an international series, with games in Europe, Mexico, Canada and Asia. Also games could be played in US cities without a Franchise (LA for instance).

This would allow the NFl to spread the word around the world, without any team having to give up a home game.

If it means more games in the UK, I'm all for it

 

[AtlCB]

I'm for 18 if they take away two preseason games.

I also would like to see an 18 game schedule. I also think that players who played a significant amount the previous season shouldn't play at all in the first preseason game.

 

[LarryCanadian]

I think it's a great idea, although the person that said, 18 games has an even better idea.

I asked this last year and will ask it again, how many roster spots are usually up for grabs during training camp? 3-5 on average per team?

Yes, I think they need to expand the 53 man roster if they do this, AND the game day roster by 3-5 guys too.

I think that also would be great for the game as you can bring more specialists to the game that might be pure speed guys, or just the huge guy you plug in for short yardage defense, etc.

All teams should have same number of preseason games at 2 or 3, not 4 or 5.

Way more TV and Stadium revenue for all.

With 17 games I expect they'd alternate home game one year road game next, or do alternate venues to promote games in non-NFL team cities. Either way great for league.

If they up the rosters to 58 guys, the guys that are bubble guys can continue to be evaluated during the year, rather than having to do it in preseason. Training camp is for training new systems and new players of course, but with a larger roster you can integrate those players more slowly, or play them part time with lesser risk.

Long overdue.

LarryCanadian

 

[theogt]

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

 

[dcfanatic]

This is all about me.

Please make it a 24 week season.

I know, I know. Guys would be dead by week 20.

But just imagine the season starts in September and doesn't end until like a month before the draft.

 

[peplaw06]

Yuck.

I like the balance of 16 games and how it makes the schedule work.

I'm with you on this one.

With the odd number of regular season games, the conferences would alternate between its teams hosting nine games in a season and its teams hosting eight games.

Sounds like from the article they're talking about giving the AFC one extra home game one year, then switching to the NFC the next. I guess that means that the extra game will be an inter-conference game, so for the Cowboys, one more AFC opponent. We already play 4, playing one entire division, like the North this season.

How would they decide who the one extra game is against? Pair up another division and match up the same-place finishers from the year before? That only puts more imbalance of the schedules than there is already with division winners matched up with two division winers from the same conference.

I just don't see how it will work logistically.

 

[joseephuss]

What it comes down to is that an extra game means extra income to the owners. They don't get much for pre season games. The catch 22 is going to be that players are going to want to get paid for that extra game.

Are we sure the owners don't get much for pre-season games?

The owners are not paying the players that much to play pre-season games.

The owners still charge regular price for tickets.

Based on those two things, I would say that the owners are getting more money than a regular season game. The thing I don't know is how about the television revenue. How is the revenue counted in the pre-season? Do the networks pay a lot for the few pre-season games they cover? Do teams get a lot of money from their own little mini-networks such as the Silverstar Network that shows the Cowboys pre-season games?


I don't like the idea of a 17 or 18 game schedule even with an expanded roster. Teams and players get beat up enough with a 16 game regular season schedule and 4 pre-season games. They don't even go full out in the 4 pre-season games. Replace 1 or 2 pre-season games with 1 or 2 regular season games and you will see more injuries. One or two more games means the QBs will be getting hit more. This is already a league short on quality QBs, so it can't really afford to see the QBs face more opportunities to get injured.

I love football and would love to see a game every week of the year, but I don't want to see games featuring a bunch of scrubs because teams just get too beat down from too many games.