Proposal for 18-game schedule officially on the table
In the wake of recent speculation, the NFL and its Players' Association have announced that a proposal to extend the NFL's regular season schedule to 18 games is officially on the table.
Indianapolis Colts' president Bill Polian had been quoted on Monday, saying that the schedule change was already a done deal, but this was not the case. And although the idea of an 18-game schedule is not exactly uncharted territory for discussion among
NFL circles, the announcement from the most recent round of bargaining between the two sides is the first time the proposal has been made official.
Some of the issues that must be considered (during an 18-game schedule) include figuring out how to keep the balance between league profitability and providing the fans with a superior product that they will continue to enjoy. On the other hand, the NFL
must ensure player safety and make sure that the workload doesn't become too grueling for its players.
"The key," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press on Wednesday, "is to approach it the right way and work closely with our players and clubs to come up with a year-round football calendar that will be better for everyone,
including the fans."
This point was further reiterated by Atlanta Falcons president, and competition committee member, Rich McKay.
"First of all, you have to protect the quality of the game. You've got to look at player safety and health, and it really ends up having to be a comprehensive solution that involves the offseason, that involves training camp, it involves the regular season,
it involves roster sizes -- it involves a lot of things."
The current collective bargaining agreement, initially put in place in 1993 and amended twice since, is set to expire in March of next year.
The proposed extension to the regular season schedule, along with other matters, will be discussed before the 2011-12 season kicks off a year from now with both sides, and of course the fans, all hoping that an agreement will be reached beforehand.
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