https://sports.yahoo.com/18-games-could-coming-sooner-210831695.html
Yes, the NFL inevitably will expand to 18 regular-season games. The extra game could be here sooner than expected.
The current Collective Bargaining Agreement between the league and the NFL Players Association runs through the 2030 season. It has been believed that an 18-game season would be part of the next CBA.
But the NFL and NFLPA can reach any agreement they want, at any time. And we’ve heard that the two sides have spoken, as recently as Monday.
Last week, Commissioner Roger Goodell mentioned an 18-game season, twice. He told Bloomberg TV that it’s a “logical step” to shift the current formula from 17 regular-season games and three preseason games to 18 and two. On Friday night, Goodell said on Jason Kelce’s ESPN show that the league “probably” will move to 18 games.
Obviously, that requires the consent of the NFLPA. In 2020, the union agreed to add another game as part of the current CBA. For more than a decade, Goodell has been eyeing a move to 18 total games.
And, yes, it’s possible (if not likely) that the two sides are hammering something out currently.
It comes at a time when the NFLPA has offered buyouts to roughly half of its 150-employee workforce. (The initial deadline for accepting, we’re told, was Tuesday.) Also, a ruling landed this week on the collusion grievance filed by the NFLPA in November 2022. Some in league circles believe the league has been quiet about the outcome (which apparently was a victory) in order to not disrupt the momentum toward an 18-game deal.
So when could 18 games happen? The Super Bowl to cap the 2026 season already lands on President’s Day weekend in 2027, because Labor Day lands on the latest possible day in 2026, on September 7. And while the location for the February 2028 Super Bowl has been selected (Atlanta) the date for the game has not yet been set.
The 2027 season will begin on Thursday, September 8. The Super Bowl, with 17 games, would land on Sunday, February 13. That’s one week short of President’s Day weekend.
Of course, that would mean 18 games with only one bye.
Regardless, 18 games are coming. And they could be coming soon.
https://sports.yahoo.com/18-games-could-coming-sooner-210831695.html
