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Thread: Extra game?

  1. #1
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    Default Extra game?

    Extra game, extra pain

    May 22, 2008, 5:02:57 AM by Jonathan Rand - FAQ



    Chances are you wouldn’t hear any bellyaching from Chiefs fans if instead of seeing the last pre-season game against the Rams on a Thursday night in Arrowhead Stadium, they could watch the Chiefs open their 2008 season three days later.
    The possibility of such a scenario was recently floated by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. He suggested that a 17th regular-season game, perhaps at the expense of a pre-season game, could provide a nice boost to league revenues.
    Have you ever heard anybody complain that the preseason ends too quickly? Choosing between a pre-season and a regular-season game is like choosing between a screen saver and the day’s most outrageous You Tube video.
    Most NFL teams play four pre-season games, using the first two to look rookies and one of the last two as a dress rehearsal. Starters often make cameo appearances in the final game to keep their edge without tempting injury. Herm Edwards had his starters out by halftime in a 10-3 loss at St. Louis last year as the Chiefs wrapped up a winless preseason.
    It’s hard to argue with Goodell when he says, “We are not satisfied with the quality of the preseason right now. We’d like to improve on that.”
    An extra weekend of real games would bring the league an additional fat chunk of network TV revenue, as opposed to local rights fees for most pre-season games. Though pre-season games may be included in season-ticket packages, half-empty stadiums mean less money spent on parking and concessions.
    Swapping an exhibition for a game that counts would seem like a win-win situation, except for players’ bodies. And here’s where the issue begins to become less clear-cut, especially because the league’s cut of the extra booty would not be all gravy.
    The league would have to negotiate for an extra game with the players’ union, which commands about 60 percent of league revenues for its members. Rosters would have to expand to allow for the wear and tear of another game. If the schedule is increased by about six percent, the 53-man roster probably would have to be increased accordingly – perhaps by three players.
    But players aren’t machines and it’s hard to predict that increasing the schedule by six percent would increase the risk of injury only slightly. Common sense would suggest there’s a point at which one extra game becomes the straw that breaks the camel’s back, and we suddenly see an unacceptable spike in season-ending injuries.
    But how many games are too many? We probably won’t know until we get there. The 2007 Giants played 20 games to win the NFL championship. Could they have held up for a 21st?
    NFL teams routinely played six pre-season games through 1977. Redskins coach George Allen, for one, saw nothing wrong with making starters play four quarters in all of them. Only coaches could stand these endless summers. They swore they needed six games to properly evaluate young talent.
    The regular season lasted only lasted 14 games then, the players’ union was merely a shell of its current self and some players needed the long summer to work off winter beer bellies. Starting in 1978, the league replaced two exhibitions with two regular-season games and the 16-game schedule has been a hit ever since.
    But in a league that expects year-around conditioning and off-season work on the field and in the classroom, preseason games are becoming increasingly anachronistic. It’s almost inevitable that the NFL will eventually dump two pre-season games and play an 18-game regular season, as the United States Football League played in the mid-1980s.
    It’s just a matter of how owners and players can divvy up the extra money and keep everybody happy. Their current spat notwithstanding, they almost always figure out a way to do that.






    25 votes




    The opinions offered in this column do not necessarily reflect those of the Kansas City Chiefs.

    What are your Thoughts Crowd?

  2. #2
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    I think if they shortened the preseason and then added two regular season games and one extra bye week then football could be extended until the end of Feb.
    The only reason a beer sweats around Canada is because he's decided it will be the next beer he drinks.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Canada View Post
    I think if they shortened the preseason and then added two regular season games and one extra bye week then football could be extended until the end of Feb.
    The more football I get to watch, the better.
    Thanks for all the yards, TDs, and memories, Priest!

  4. #4
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    In the words of the wise old Chiefster....eggsactly!!
    The only reason a beer sweats around Canada is because he's decided it will be the next beer he drinks.

  5. #5
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    Did someone say more football....


    YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------
    The 49ers own my heart, but the Chiefs will always hold a better than neutral spot for giving my favorite player a place to leave with grace...

    Resident Comedian/Statistician/Researcher/Diplomat

  6. #6
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    I'll take as much Chiefs football as I can get!!!

    http://arrowheadjunkies.com/pictures/PhotoShop/sig_pics/NFL_Players/kansas_city_chiefs/tyson.jackson/062009/tyson.jackson.500.png

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Canada View Post
    In the words of the wise old Chiefster....eggsactly!!

    Agreed!

    You have been paying attention and have learned well.

    I can take or leave the preseason; couldn't end soon enough for me so that we can get to the real deal.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by hermhater View Post
    I'll take as much Chiefs football as I can get!!!

    Eggsactly!

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