At Lauderdale Meeting, NFL Owners Consider Adding Games to Schedule

On May 18, National Football League owners will congregate at some swanky Fort Lauderdale hotel to decide, among other things, whether they should add regular season games to what is currently a 16-game schedule.The USA Today reports that one influential member of that fraternity, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, wants 18...

By Thomas Francis

March 26, 2009

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On May 18, National Football League owners will congregate at some swanky Fort Lauderdale hotel to decide, among other things, whether they should add regular season games to what is currently a 16-game schedule.

The USA Today reports that one influential member of that fraternity, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, wants 18. Another possibility is 17.

I'm surprised that this story isn't getting more attention. The implications of an expanded regular season schedule are huge: For one, almost every future regular-season record would require an asterisk. Then there's the extra wear and tear on the players, for whom concussions -- and the lasting brain irregularities that often come with them -- are a serious issue. Yes, the NFL would try to mediate those concerns by trimming the preseason, but the stars play sparingly in those games anyway.

Here's another story that discusses some of the other bits of reshuffling necessary to accommodate the new format.

One fan's opinion: Keep the schedule as it is.

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