NFL 18-Game Season

[Tiger Growlin 0]

Question: Are you in favor of a 18-Game regular season? Signs are pointing to this being the case starting with the 2012 season. Me personally I love me some football but i'm not sold on the the change. Yes I want a shortened preseason. Looks to me like the owners are just looking to make more money. Other than money I see no other reason to do so. Also I believe in the long term it will shorten players careers having to play more games by beating up their bodies that much more. I think in the end it will happen but i'm not fond of the idea. Your thoughts.

[njtiger 0]

I will be forever grateful if the NFL goes to an 18-Game season.  The NFL is where REAL football is played.

[augolf1716 20,249]

Very good points you bring up. If your a season ticket holder you pay the same for preseason as you do for regular season games. I am sure they will be going to an 18 game schedule.

[Tiger Growlin 0]

One thing I saw brought up was a possible change in the injured reserve rule. Right now if you're put on the IR you're done for the season. The talk is possibly going back to the old rule of if you're put on the IR you can come back after sitting for six weeks.

[AuburnEngineer 0]

No I am not in favor of 18 games....way too many games

[njtiger 0]

It isn't too many games considering the 4 preseason games already scheduled.  Add to that the fact that the starters play a total equivalent of a HALF of football over those 4 games and you see that there are too many preseason games.  It will also mean another bye week so an NFL team gets 2 byes over a 20-week season.  The season starts at the same time but with the extra weeks, the SuperBowl will be played the night before President's Day.  And (I really hope on this that this is true) with Super Sunday being before President's Day and the monday post Super Bowl being the most "called out" day for sick days, President's Day would become like Memorial Day and Labor Day, just in February.

Now honestly, how could anyone NOT be in favor of a system that extends football for another month AND provides us all with an extra day off?

[Tiger Growlin 0]

I guess the only reason i'm against is because it comes at a time when ticket prices are rising, and the owners are trying to lower the pay for the players. Its like your boss asking you to work weekends now with at a rate less than I have been paying you in the past for you 5 day work week. If they would guarantee contracts like in other sports I wouldn't have as much of an issue. But as of now its all for the owners and not the players. Some think that there should be a rookie pay scale put in place similar to the NBA model but I don't think that's the answer either. That will only mean you won't get paid at the start of your career and you for sure won't get it later in your career. As soon as your numbers take a dip you will be cut and you can't collect on the remaining money on your deal because it wasn't guaranteed. Look at what Chris Johnson had to go through to get more money from the Titans and he is still underpaid. Had they not bumped up a bonus he was due later in his contract he would've been the lowest paid rb on his team. This after running for over 2k yards. Even if you outplay your contract you can't get paid.