In the world of American football, there is a buzz surrounding the inevitable expansion of the NFL regular season from 17 games to 18 games. And who knows what could happen after that? 19? 20?
The potential addition of one more game has sparked discussions about the possibility of incorporating a second bye week into the schedule. During a recent fan forum in London, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell touched on this topic, pondering the idea of giving all teams an additional week of rest.
“A lot of that depends on — can we continue to make the game safer, can we continue to modify the way we conduct the offseason as well as the training camp and as well as the season, so that these guys feel comfortable being able to play that period of time?” Goodell stated, as reported by ESPN.com.
If the league can achieve these goals of enhancing player safety and adjusting the schedule effectively, it would likely lead to maintaining just one bye week. This would be necessary in order to squeeze a full season between the Thursday after Labor Day and President’s Day weekend. Introducing a second bye week would mean the NFL would have to kick off the season on Labor Day weekend, a move that hasn’t been taken since 2001 due to lower viewership during the end of summer.
Looking back at history, the NFL experimented with two bye weeks back in 1993. The networks were not fans of this format as it led to a diluted weekly schedule.
Much of the decision-making will come down to the stance of the NFL Players Association on the matter of a second bye. It is essential for the union to stand firm against the possibility of an 18-game season, leveraging their position to secure more concessions from the league.
Even though the owners may have the power to implement an extra game with the looming threat of a lockout come March 2031 when the current labor agreement expires, the only way to introduce an 18-game season before then is with the agreement of the NFLPA.
This places the players’ union in a position of influence that they should fully utilize, potentially including the negotiation of a second bye week in the future. The ball is in their court, and they must play it wisely to ensure the best possible outcome for their members.
