Now, this is a good idea.From Ruben James at examiner.com:
Roger Goodell said that he was looking forward to the owners meeting in May in Fort Lauderdale, Fl. He was hopeful for a proposal for a expansion of the regular season to 17 or 18 games and dropping two preseason games. Still keeping the 20 game format intact, although it will probably not happen until 2011 or so.First of all, I have to take a moment to say how awesome it is that the guy who wrote this is named Ruben James. Because for the rest of the day, I'm going to have the old Kenny Rogers song "Rueben James" in my head:
Rueben Jaaaaaames,Anybody? Nobody? Well, whatever. It's going to be in my head all day, and that's fine by me if I'm the only one.
You still walk the fertile fields of my mind.
Faded shirt, weathered brow,
Calloused hands upon the plow,
I loved you then and I love you now,
Rueben James
Anyway, there are few things dumber on the sports calendar every year than NFL preseason games. People pay good money for parking and tickets, and they get to see Peyton Manning and Tom Brady play a couple of series before they get taken out so they don't get hurt. Players do get hurt in preseason games, and then there's all this wailing and gnashing of teeth about how stupid it is that players put themselves at risk in preseason games.
Now, if you took two of the four preseason games these teams play and turned them into regular-season games, then you've got something. You've got zillions more in TV money, because these would turn into games people actually watch on TV. You'd sell more ads for them. You'd expand the size of the most anticipated regular season in all of sports by 12.5 percent, giving a football-crazed nation more real football to go crazy for. You could still basically use those two games to work out some roster issues if you wanted to, because no matter what happens in them you'd still have the same 16 games in which to recover that you have now.
I can't imagine the owners not wanting this. Can they sell it to their TV partners, who'd have to pony up more in a poor economy? Can they sell it to the players, who will undoubtedly want more money if they're playing more real games? Can they do all of this with big labor problems looming? These are the key questions, and I don't imagine we have the answers yet.
But as an idea, it's a great one.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-25-2009 @ 3:13PM
becarefulangel said...
Why don't they make it an odd number of games to prevent against even records and a situation like the AFC West last year with two teams tied at 8-8? Even records are ridiculous; teams should end each year with a winning record or a losing record, period.
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3-25-2009 @ 4:45PM
Completely Useless said...
Can't be 17 games, because then half the league gets 9 homes games, the other half of the league gets 8 home games. Not a fair situation. Also, who is to say the AFC West last year wouldn't have been won with an 8-9 record, if they had played 17 games??
Of course, forcing one team each year to play a "home" game in London is not fair, either....
Should be a 18 game season, period.
3-25-2009 @ 4:44PM
Jim said...
Good to hear. If they're getting banged up for 20 games they might as well mean something. Football is the only sport I watch.
GO BEARS!!!!
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3-25-2009 @ 4:47PM
svetahor said...
The NFL sixteen game season is brutal already on the human body! During the season, teams fall simply because the human body breaks down during the season.
I know that the "fans" and sports media go bonkers over injuries in the preseason. However, how many top players play the entire game anyway? Sure there will be injuries, but how many more will be injured by adding two more regular season games and subtracting two preseason games? Now the starters now must play full time for keeps for two more games?
I am surprised that the NFL Players Association doesn't say "NO!" to this.
I know that football fans hate preseason because they want the real games. But injuries are going to increase! Also, as a side point, how many draftees and walk-ons will now lose a chance to prove themselves?
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3-25-2009 @ 8:26PM
Terry's said...
Personally I lose some stamina during the two weeks prior to the Super Bowl. How about adding a "Loser Bowl" for the two runners up. Better yet, use that weekend and one preseason weekend for the two additional games.
Injuries happen. So does stomach flu, death of players' family members, or "shootouts in a bar" like P. Burris starred in. Sometimes what makes good teams great is depth - someone to step in when a starter is sidelined, or performs poorly and gets yanked.
How many injuries could be prevented if all stadium surfaces were natural grass and no astroturf (some of them don't drain rainwater)?
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3-25-2009 @ 8:27PM
clippingerins said...
Regarding an NFL team in L.A. there is a strong opposition to the City of Industry site and hardships on the cities of Walnut and Diamond Bar. L.A. has done without a NFL team for a long time and we do not need one now. This will only benefit the NFL and not anyone else.
I will be on the commitee to fight this project.
Thanks Dick Clippinger--Diamond Bar
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3-25-2009 @ 10:52PM
pcfriar66 said...
If they exchange two pre season games for two additional regular season games, then I can live with that. However, if they extend the season, with the Super Bowl not coming until Washington's Birthday, I will no longer watch. One of the things that turned me off from the NBA was that the playoffs don't end until June. Ditto for the NHL. The World Series will now go at least into November, even if it goes only 4 games. Washington's Birthday is just about spring in much of the country. I say have spring workouts in May and June, take a break in July, start pre-season first Suday of August, then regular season two weeks after that (latest start would be Sunday August 21). This would allow for an 18 game regular seasons and still have the Super Bowl no later than Jan. Nov. World Series and February Super Bowls started as an emergency situation after 9-11-01 when sports was cancelled for a week. Now it appears to be the norm. Let's get the seasons back where they should be.
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3-26-2009 @ 2:55PM
chubbs1043 said...
This is a really dumb idea. You're going to have more guys getting hurt throughout the course of the season and the quality of play in the playoffs will suffer. The season is long enough as it is; this move is designed simply to make the league more money, something I couldn't care less about.
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