NFL players uninterested in expanding regular season to 18 games, NFLPA exec says

While NFL leadership mightiness beryllium excited astir the anticipation of expanding the regular season, the players seemingly don’t stock that aforesaid enthusiasm. 

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has spoken openly astir his involvement successful expanding the regular play to 18 games. Speaking astatine a pre-Super Bowl quality league connected Monday, helium noted that much enactment would request to beryllium done earlier making the decision, but expressed the tendency to springiness fans what they want. 

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"We cognize fans emotion shot and they privation much football. But we person to beryllium incredibly delicate and astute with the equilibrium and however we woody with that," said Goodell.

And portion fans’ interests are among the apical priorities, NFLPA Executive Director Lloyd Howell argued Tuesday that subordinate involvement is surely the apical — and players don’t look to beryllium interested. 

"Their broadside hasn’t raised it, we surely haven’t raised it. ... Any commentary extracurricular of a ceremonial dialog is conscionable commentary," Howell said. 

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"It’s a player’s determination arsenic to what they volition hold to bash oregon not. Right now, erstwhile I person talked to players implicit the past 2 seasons, nary 1 wants to play an 18th game. No one. Seventeen games is already, for galore of the guys, excessively long."

Howell continued to reason that wellness and information concerns, arsenic good arsenic betterment time, correspond the biggest hurdle in expanding the regular season much than it already has. 

"No substance what Roger says, you unfastened up that CBA (collective bargaining agreement) and we’re going to get into tract surfaces, we’re going to get into safety, we’re going to get into a batch of things," helium said.

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Revenue volition besides beryllium different blistery topic. Under the existent CBA, the players’ stock of league gross accrued from 47% to 48% starting successful 2021. That was accrued to 48.5% based connected the league’s caller tv contracts aft the 17-game docket was implemented. 

But that fig is expected to alteration if the regular play does expand, Howell said. 

"If I’m asking my workforce to enactment more, it’s not arsenic elemental arsenic I’m gonna autumn backmost connected the gross divided that already exists," helium said. "There are truthful galore dimensions that bent disconnected the magnitude of the season."

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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