Do YOU want 17 or 18 regular season games?

[Tunescribe]

Fuhrer Goodell says the fans want 17 or 18 regular-season games and two or three preseason games. He plans to push this to the owners. If anything, I think they should keep 16 regular-season games and drop one or two preseason games, replacing them with controlled scrimmages. Of course, the owners won't go for that because it would mean less revenue. But, 17 or 18 REGULAR-SEASON games? There's enough injury attrition already. I'm sick of this prima donna tinkering with the game.

 

[SammyBlueCat]

You are 100% correct. There are already too many injuries so this is a bad idea.

 

[BradyBranch39]

16 and 3 preseason is what I want.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

The problem with an 18 game regular season is it creates a 21 or 22 game playoff season for the best teams in the league. Having watched the toll playing 19 game seasons back to back took on this team...stupid greed driven idea. (As is overseas expansion). I think teams need 4 games in pre season to get veterans back up to game speed (2) and evaluate rookies and youngsters and some veteran FA's (4). I doubt fans would mind if season ticket holders didn't have to buy two of those games. And frankly those of us who have never had season tickets would welcome the opportunity to but pre season tickets at face value...I bet those games would sell out here, anyway.

 

[eternal]

The season is already long enough, and the amount of injuries would be magnified even more with a longer regular season.

Eliminate the 1st preseason game, shorten TC by a week, or spread the same amount of practices over the extra weeks time.

 

[spacecrime]

I like to watch football. The 16 game season is better than the 14 game season, which was better than the 12 game season.

Why 18? Go to 20. Two bye weeks. No preseason games, only a few scrimmages with other teams, not full games.

They play 20 games now, just change out exhibition for regular season.

The long off-season sucks. Why would anyone not want more football?

Using injuries as a reason for not going to 18 games is thinking inside the box.

Expand your mind. There are better ways to deal with injuries than not playing football.

Expand the roster to 60 players. Expand the practice squad to 15 players. Allow 10 practice squad players who cannot be signed away by other teams. Allow each team two or three tempoarary DL players that can come back onto the team during the season after they heal.

Lots of ways if you open your mind.

If you like to watch football.

 

[Rainy-Day Patriot]

I know it's crazy, but I would love to have 18 games, where every team within a conference plays each other every season, and teams within a division play each other twice as they do now. This would rule out interconference play until the Super Bowl, but I would sacrifice that for the great annual rivalries and the increased fairness in schedule strength.

Yeah, I'm crazy, but that's my two cents.

Sean

 

[MoLewisrocks]

I like to watch football. The 16 game season is better than the 14 game season, which was better than the 12 game season.

Why 18? Go to 20. Two bye weeks. No preseason games, only a few scrimmages with other teams, not full games.

They play 20 games now, just change out exhibition for regular season.

The long off-season sucks. Why would anyone not want more football?

Using injuries as a reason for not going to 18 games is thinking inside the box.

Expand your mind. There are better ways to deal with injuries than not playing football.

Expand the roster to 60 players. Expand the practice squad to 15 players. Allow 10 practice squad players who cannot be signed away by other teams. Allow each team two or three tempoarary DL players that can come back onto the team during the season after they heal.

Lots of ways if you open your mind.

If you like to watch football.

It's not all about us. It's about the players, too. A 20 game regular season takes a killer toll. A 4 game pre season takes almost no toll where starters are concerned. You can't honestly be equating the effort of 4 pre season games to regular season action. We don't even game plan for them. The coaches are too busy still evaluating performance and testing personnel groupings, assimilating recent acquisitions, and getting 2nd and 3rd stringers some needed reps and fine tuning playbooks for a new season.


I like to watch good football. I also enjoy watching the process through which my team is built to play good football. I don't enjoy watching physically or mentally exhausted or injury descimated teams limp into the post season...makes for a rather disappointing playoff season.

 

[brdmaverick]

Well, I'm surprised to find out that I took the most popular position. Even though 16 games and 2/3 preseason games is the most popular pick, it is the most unlikely considering that this actually reduces the TOTAL number of games. If anything the NFL wants to create more meaningful games.

I want to stick with a 16 game season because I think we need remember why the NFL is so great. With only 16 games, every win is huge but not every loss is devastating like in college. The NFL has a perfect balance going. I love football, but 18 games may be too many, and here are my reasons why......

1.) This makes a greater chance that star players get injured before the playoffs.
2.) With more games, it creates a GREATER liklihood that teams will be further separated in the standings come week 19 (which means more meaningless games).
3.) I am a sucker for stats. No matter how many games are in a season, the 1,000 yard plateu remains the same for rushers and receivers. With 18 games, a runner/receiver would only need to average 56 yards to reach the 1,000 yard milestone.
4.) Though only slightly, adding two more games to the schedule diminishes the importance of each game (as compared to a 16 game season).

 

[Deus Irae]

It's all about player safety....... unless the league can find a way to increase profits at the expense of that safety.

 

[Patjew]

I would like a 51 game season with a one week break between seasons.

Sure, it would be difficult. But at least we'd have the draft to occupy us during the offseason.

 

[BradyFixesEverything]

I would like a 51 game season with a one week break between seasons.

Sure, it would be difficult. But at least we'd have the draft to occupy us during the offseason.

Haha, Patjew I totally agree

Still, the thing I love more then anything about the NFL is that every game is so meaningful. Having more games diminishes the meaning of each game. As much as I hate going so long without football, I would rather they leave it the way it is. You need the preseason games to evaluate the rookies. You always hear players and coaches talk about how you can't simulate game speed outside a game, so I don't see how you can truly replace those snaps.

 

[Patjew]

Haha, Patjew I totally agree

Still, the thing I love more then anything about the NFL is that every game is so meaningful. Having more games diminishes the meaning of each game. As much as I hate going so long without football, I would rather they leave it the way it is. You need the preseason games to evaluate the rookies. You always hear players and coaches talk about how you can't simulate game speed outside a game, so I don't see how you can truly replace those snaps.

Valid points, I think. I'd like an 18 regular season game season with 2 preseason games. I think that would be enough for evaluation, and I'd love 2 extra games. The fourth PS game is a joke now anyway.

 

[Pats726]

I saw Goodell and frankly he's an idiot....he dodged questions on extended season when talked about injuries...instead talking more about keeping players safer..as if extra games would not take a lot of the wear and tear to players...like in HIS view make it 24...I mean the league has SAFETY measures about injuries??? He sidestepped it big time. Talked about preseason games NOT being up to NFL standards...huh??? He's an imbecile..has NO idea about what he's doing...And then talks MORE about expanding MORE and then international games...more wear and tear unnoticed by the Fuhrer...And that is what was MOST infuriating about what he said!! Quality was confused with meaningful...and somehow MORE is always better?? Huh?? Same dumb thing that has RUINED other sports.
The ONLY thing I found interesting was that he talked about a developmental league in the spring and THAT possibility...I THINK that could be a good idea... But the problem is they are tinkering with what works here...and at some point..players will have shortened careers even further and it will NOT be about the best teams..but the team that has less injuries in a season..It is ALMOST like that now and MANy I think can claim that it is like that. IF that is the case..MORE reg season games is only taking a problem and making it worse. Of the 4 choices..ONE... TWO will never happen because they have 20 games now...16 and 4...they will NEVER reduce that revenue stream and I can not at all vlame them. To expand just more bad ideas...

 

[Nonentity]

I'd rather watch 16 excellent games than 18 average games. And that's what'll happen when you force players to play hurt for even longer.

Just look at Ty Warren last season who stuck it out with a nasty groin injury. Do you really want him to have to try to carry that for an extra two games?

 

[patman52]

keep it the way it is now or add another bye week. to make the season 18 weeks long . Bye weeks for groups of 8 teams, first 4 and last 4 weeks no byes and the middle two weeks of the season. Every year your group moves up or down one week. The league now gets 18 weeks of TV Revenue, Players have more time to heal, tweak their playbook etc. Plus this will expose fans to more non home team games.

week 5 A group
week 6 B group
week 7 c group
week 8 d group
week 9 no bye
week 10 no bye
week 11 A group
week 12 B group
week 13 c group
week 14 d group

 

[DarrylS]

keep it the way it is now or add another bye week. to make the season 18 weeks long . Bye weeks for groups of 8 teams, first 4 and last 4 weeks no byes and the middle two weeks of the season. Every year your group moves up or down one week. The league now gets 18 weeks of TV Revenue, Players have more time to heal, tweak their playbook etc. Plus this will expose fans to more non home team games.

Interesting idea, coupled with a shorter preseason might make some sense in terms of possibly decreasing injury increasing recovery time.. and making adjustments..

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

Im all for 18, but if the leauge players and owners dont get thier ducks in a row, 2011, may only have a 7 game season .. And that would suck, the more football the better, although then 18-0 would be a little hollow..

 

[patman52]

A development league would be great, 8 teams in places like Birmingham, San Antonio, Charleston, Richmond, Memphis, Savannah, all Southern cities with no teams baseball teams. That geographic grouping would keep the travel costs down

Move up the draft one month, and have a three week TC start the following week. A 6 week season to Memorial day the players then have 8 weeks before TC

Some teams to be 3-4, some teams west coast etc, The teams to consist mainly of later rd draft choices and your practice squad. 8 teams of 36 players

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

keep it the way it is now or add another bye week. to make the season 18 weeks long . Bye weeks for groups of 8 teams, first 4 and last 4 weeks no byes and the middle two weeks of the season. Every year your group moves up or down one week. The league now gets 18 weeks of TV Revenue, Players have more time to heal, tweak their playbook etc. Plus this will expose fans to more non home team games.

This is an interesting idea.

I understand what 'molewisrocks' is saying. The toll on our players with the extra playoff games is obvious. As always, i voted without thinking. I just want more football, but not if its gonna hurt the team. I guess i'll just have to stay with 16 games, and spend the way too long offseason watching all the "3 games to glory" dvd's