NFL CBA Could Hinge on 17 game Season

by | Feb 3, 2020 | NFL

NFL CBANFL CBA seems to be right around the corner.  This deal has been being worked on for quite a while now.  The owners have made no secret that the would like to add more games to the regular season.  Originally they wanted to add two games to make it an 18 game season.  There was a lot of blow back to that idea when the owners floated it out there a little over a year ago.  They went back to the drawing board and came back with a 17 game season.   The NFLPA  still seems like they are very much against adding another game.  The owners see like they are very much for adding another game.

Owners Push 17th Game in CBA

The last CBA that is gong to expire at the end of next season favored the owners heavily in some areas.  With the last NFL CBA coming in 2011 there has been a pretty stable working environment for almost 10 years now. With the growth of the league revenue over those years it is going to be important for both sides to get this done with no interruption of games.  Either from a strike or a lock out.  A work stoppage  would be detrimental to the growth of the league.  Just ask the NHL and MLB about that.  The NFL also did damage to their league that last time they missed games.  Both sides need to get this hammered out.  The owners seem to really want that 17th game.  It appears that they are going to be willing to give up quite a bit to get it.

Players Stuck at 16 Games

The players seem pretty adamant that they will not move past the 16 game regular season.  I really can’t blame them.  As a fan I think that the 16 game season is the right length.  Almost every game counts.  But every few years there is a teams that is far enough ahead that they can rest players.  For the sake of the fans it seems like you would really want to limit that as much as possible.

The other concern would be for injuries and just plain out fatigue.  You can only play so many games before your body starts to break down and it takes too long to recover.  Adding a 17th game might hit that for a few players but not all.  It is different for everyone.  But it would definitely play a factor in how players approached the games.

If they are going to add an extra game the owners would have to give in to a few things.  The owners seem to want the extra game so bad that if the players decide to give in they are probably going to be able to ask for quite a few things in return.

Things I have seen mentioned

  • Increase the active roster – this would help with the fatigue factor and provide more jobs for players
  • Get rid of the franchise and Transition Tag – no one liked those anyway.  It has hurt the players and I am sure they will be able to get rid of them
  • Relax Pot Punishment – I have always thought the punishment for Pot was way to extreme.  Too extreme is any punishment.  It will be legal almost everywhere very soon.  I have not understood why it was Okay to take copious amounts of pain pills but then Pot you get banned.  This will be gone
  • increase in the current shared revenue.  Currently at 47 percent would have to probably to almost 50 for the players to agree
  • Shorten the preseason. The games do not mean a lot anyway.  Most coaches say they get more out of combined practices.  Preseason games have stadium revenue but the television revenue is minimal.

I am sure that there is much more involved that the owners will be willing to give up to get that 17 game.  Adding one more game could be worth almost a billion dollars.  That is a lot of money.  You can easily see why the owners would want to add that game.   I have been hearing a lot of different things.  Both sides know that they need to get this done.  The sooner they get it done the better.  Seems like the players have a lot of leverage now is the time to use it.  As much as I do not want a 17 game season.  The players may be able to use that game to make things more level over all.

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