The NFL has added more games to its regular-season schedule for the first time in more than four decades starting in 2021. The NFL made the announcement earlier this offseason that each NFL team will play a 17-game schedule moving forward, and teams will play three preseason games instead of four.
Prior to this season, the last tweak to the NFL’s regular-season format came in 1978 when the league moved from 14 to 16 regular-season games, and preseason games had been reduced from six to four.
Perhaps the biggest winner in this situation is the fans as the nationwide NFL obsession seems set to become even greater. The interest in professional football does not seem to be ending anytime soon with the continued success of fantasy football and new states legalizing sports betting, and now there’s one more full week to enjoy. The biggest adjustment from a fan’s perspective might just be never saying their favorite team will finish 8-8 this season or any combination of numbers that add up to 16.
So how will a 17th game impact your team’s chances of winning it all? It’s a fun, new topic to debate, but there is unlikely to be a significant difference among the top teams whether it’s a 16-game or 17-game slate. If your favorite team has an elite quarterback, it is likely among the teams that can contend for a Super Bowl. Still, here are a few items to consider heading into the first 17-game regular season.
The obvious con is the potential for additional injuries. With the increase in competition in a collision-fueled sport like football, it’s reasonable to assume your favorite team could be hit with more injuries. Teams that manage to stay the healthiest will be in a good spot, and depth has never been more important.
Even though it is just one extra week, one item that could be considered is the idea that parity across the league could increase even more with another game. For example, we know not all teams are created equal to start the season, as some are more ready to hit the ground running than others.
For a team that is extremely young with plenty of rookies seeing playing time — maybe even at the quarterback position — it could take several weeks to start clicking as a unit. If a team holds its own for the first half of the year but then really turns it on around Week 10, adding another opportunity for a win can be huge. This can also be true for franchises that went heavy on free agents in the offseason and play their best football toward the regular season’s end.
Zach Wilson not taking starting Jets job for granted https://t.co/ii3I9BrQJD pic.twitter.com/cqY9CSriDX
— New York Post (@nypost) May 8, 2021
The 17th game represents a new era for the NFL, and football fans certainly can’t wait to watch.
Picture Credit: Google Creative Commons Licenses, Pixabay
