One of the worst-kept secrets in the NFL is that the season could one day expand from 17 games to 18. It was a topic addressed by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell at a Super Bowl press conference in February, during which he stated that while no discussions had been had yet, an 18-game season remained a "possibility." Just two months later at the annual league meetings, CBS Sports reported that an 18-game campaign was seen as "inevitable."
Well, given the grueling nature of the current 17-game season, which increased from 16 in 2021, the possibility of more games being added to the schedule is not an idea welcomed by the players.
Most notably, Kansas City Chiefs superstar Patrick Mahomes, regarded as the face of the league by some, addressed the subject during an interview with CNBC that aired on Friday.
"I think that you’d have to find a way to have more bye weeks, more time spread out," Mahomes said. "Because, I mean, you’ve seen the amount of injuries that have kind of piled up there at the end of seasons, and you want to have the best players playing in the biggest games. And so if there were a way to get to 18 games, I’m not—I’m not a big fan of it. But if there were a way, I think you got to add some bye weeks in there to give more time for guys’ bodies."
Goodell in February had floated the idea of an 18-game regular season and a two-game preseason. In that event, the season would likely start on Labor Day Weekend, a second bye week would be added and the Super Bowl would occur on the weekend leading up to Presidents' Day, meaning many fans would have the day off the day after the Super Bowl. Cincinnati Bengals star quarterback Joe Burrow proposed a similar idea, one that was widely lauded by fans.
For what it's worth, here's how NFL Players Association executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. responded to Goodell's comments on the potential 18-game season back in February.
"No one wants to play an 18th game. No one," Howell said. "Seventeen games is already, for many of the guys, too long. Seventeen games is also so lengthy that you're still dealing with injuries going into the next season. So, there are a variety of issues that hang off of the length of the season before any formal negotiations."
Judging by those—and Mahomes's—comments, it would seem that the NFL will have a battle on its hands when it eventually does get to discussing an expanded schedule with the Players Association.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Patrick Mahomes Reveals True Thoughts on Potential 18-Game Season.
