Before most NFL training camps begin this week and football season opens in leagues across the country, we’re taking a look at some of the debates surrounding the sport’s health impacts. Today, we’ll examine the validity of proposals to extend the NFL regular season.
At various points during his six-year NFL career, the former Pennsylvania State University offensive guard Rich Ohrnberger and his teammates would notice rumors about the league’s desire to expand the regular season from 16 to 18 games.
Ohrnberger was entering his third season with the Patriots when a series of contentious negotiations between league owners and the players’ association led to a brief lockout in 2011.
Despite all that, Ohrnberger never considered the 18-game schedule a likely possibility, and he said players across the league thought owners liked the idea because more meaningful games would fatten their wallets. Still, the topic sparked locker room conversations. Playing extra games without proper compensation continued to worry players, Ohrnberger said.
Last week, the topic of an 18-game schedule was once again front-page news and media outlets across the country as NFL executives and players’ association representatives met to resume collective bargaining talks. And an extended regular season remains, above all, a notable “table topic,” according to Joel Maxcy, director of sports management at Drexel University.
While the NFL has tried to introduce ideas for expanding the regular season that might appeal to players, union leaders have spoken out against an extended schedule in any form. Owners have proposed an 18-game schedule with a 16-game limit for any individual player, The Wall Street Journal reported last week. Players didn’t bite.
Ohrnberger said he understands why players are hesitant to consider the idea of playing more regular-season games.
“For the players, the most important thing is to protect themselves from a compensation standpoint, to make sure they’re properly compensated,” Ohrnberger said. “And then, obviously, you have to understand that adding two games has a much bigger impact on the body.”
Former San Diego Chargers guard Rich Ohrnberger (74) celebrates after a 27-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in an NFL playoff football game, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Tom Uhlman)AP
Research into the link between football and long-term brain injuries has grown over the past decade, and public awareness of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a brain disease doctors associate with the sport, has grown. With football’s dangers widely publicized, the pros and cons of an 18-game schedule are easier to unpack.
Maxcy said two additional games would boost the league’s revenue from television contracts, giving owners and players the opportunity to make more money. The additional games could also lead to more collisions, concussions and player hazards.
“With the focus on head injuries, these risks are more visible than they have ever been to players and the players’ union,” Maxcy said.
The NFL Players Association, which did not respond to our request for comment for this article, has regularly denounced the proposals for an 18-match schedule.
But the league, led by commissioner Roger Goodell, has reasons to pursue the additional contests and make the topic attractive to fans, Maxcy said.
According to Maxcy, there are various proposals being made as part of the collective bargaining tactics. The NFL could generate more revenue by adding two games to the schedule, but if owners agree to keep the limit at 16, Maxcy said the league will likely push to reduce the percentage of revenue players receive.
Under their current collective bargaining agreement, which expires in March 2021, NFL players receive just under half of the league’s revenue. Owners may want to take a bigger slice of the pie in the new collective bargaining agreement and could try to use the threat of an expanded schedule to their advantage.
“Eighteen games is a safe bet, and probably a big one,” Maxcy said. “The players want to get something, so maybe the owners will say, ‘OK, we’re not going to go to an 18-game schedule, but then we’re going to cut revenue to 40 percent. Well, if you want to go to 50 percent, then we’ll just have an 18-game schedule.’”
The possibility of extra games is a bonus in the owners’ pocket, but it could be difficult to play.
Some players, including Ramon Foster of the Steelershave said the 18-game schedule is just a negotiating tactic by owners who don’t want to go through with it because of strong player opposition. Some league experts agree.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote last week that he believed there was little to no chance the NFL would add additional games.
“If the owners really wanted an 18-game season to the point of offering the players, say, 70 percent of the revenue, the players should listen to them.” Graziano wrote“But it is extremely unlikely that the two sides will find common ground.”
Pittsburgh Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey (53), offensive guard Ramon Foster (73) and offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva (78) prepare to block at the line of scrimmage during the first half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Sunday, Nov. 18, 2018, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)AP
Players and fans will continue to debate the issue, however. And uncertainty persists around some aspects of the question.
Dr. Robert Cantu, founder of Boston University’s CTE Center, said it’s difficult to predict how an 18-game regular season would affect players’ brain health.
“Unfortunately, there’s not really a good statistic that can really gauge the magnitude of the additional trauma that’s going to be inflicted, except by taking what we know over 16 games and stretching it out over a longer period of time,” Cantu said.
Despite health issues, former Giants quarterback Phil Simms suggested on a podcast Last month, some players were said to be in favor of an 18-game schedule because it could bring them more money.
Ohrnberger, for his part, said the players would consider greenlighting an 18-game schedule only after asking owners for a series of other changes. The players could demand larger rosters, an extra bye week during the season and lifetime health coverage, which the league has never offered to retirees, to offset the cost of the extra games.
Agreeing to add weeks to the regular season — even if the league introduces a limit on games per player or the new contests replace preseason games — would put players at risk of losing more bargaining power, Maxcy said. The NFL makes most of its money through television contracts, and networks would likely pay a premium for more regular-season action.
Additionally, streaming services like Amazon and Netflix are competing to broadcast NFL games, which could drive up the price of NFL broadcast contracts. The league made about $15 billion in revenue in 2018 and has a goal of reaching $25 billion by 2027. according to the Chicago Tribune.
To achieve that goal, the league could continue to push to expand the schedule to 18 games. Some owners might even dream of one day expanding the regular season to 20 or 22 weeks, Maxcy said — provided they see a business case for it.
“They are looking for a revenue optimization schedule,” Maxcy said.
That’s how NFL owners operate, Ohrnberger said. He hopes players keep that in mind.
Aaron Kasinitz covers the Baltimore Ravens for PennLive and can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @AaronKaz reports.Follow PennLive’s coverage of the Ravens on Facebook And Youtube.
