When Did the NFL Switch to 17 Games?

The NFL made the switch to a 17 game regular season in 2021. Here’s a look at why the league made the change and how it could affect the future of the sport.

Introduction

In 2020, the NFL regular season will consist of 17 games per team. This is an increase from the 16 game schedule that had been in place since 1978. The switch to a 17 game schedule was approved by NFL owners in May of 2020.

The decision to add an additional game to the schedule was not an easy one. The NFL is a billion-dollar industry, and any change to the schedule has the potential to impact the bottom line. However, after much discussion, the owners decided that the benefits of adding an additional game outweighed the risks.

One of the biggest reasons for switch was television ratings. The NFL is one of the most popular television programs in the United States. In 2019, Sunday Night Football was the most watched show on television. Adding an additional game to the schedule will give fans even more football to watch.

Another reason for adding an extra game is money. The NFL generate a lot of revenue from ticket sales, merchandise, and television contracts. Adding another game will increase revenue for the league and its teams.

The 17 game schedule will not be implemented immediately. It will be phased in over a period of years, with each team playing one additional game every year until all 32 teams are playing 17 games in 2023.

The reaction to the switch has been mixed. Some fans are excited for more football, while others worry about players getting injured more often with an extra game on the schedule. only time will tell how successful the transition to a 17 game schedule will be.

The NFL’s History with a 16-Game Schedule

The National Football League (NFL) has had a 16-game regular season schedule since 1978.

The NFL switched to a 17-game regular season schedule in 2021. The 2021 season will be the first time in the league’s history that each team will play 17 regular season games.

The NFL has expanded its playoffs for the 2021 season, adding two additional teams. As a result, there will be 14 teams in the playoffs instead of the usual 12.

The NFL has not yet announced how it will schedule the 17 regular season games for each team. It is possible that each team will play one additional game against a divisional opponent.

The NFL’s decision to switch to a 17-game regular season schedule was made in an effort to generate more revenue. The league is expected to generate an additional $2.5 billion in revenue from broadcast rights fees, ticket sales, and sponsorships as a result of the change.

The NFL’s Switch to a 17-Game Schedule

In March 2020, the NFL announced that it would be expanding the regular season from 16 games to 17 games, starting in the 2021 season. The move came as part of a new collective bargaining agreement between the league and its players’ union. The NFL had been considering expanding the regular season for several years, but had been unable to reach an agreement with the union on how to do so.

The decision to switch to a 17-game schedule was not an easy one for the NFL. The league had to weigh the pros and cons of expanding the season and ultimately decided that the benefits outweighed the risks. One of the biggest benefits of expanding the season is that it will generate more revenue for the league. With two additional games, the NFL will be able to sell more tickets, television rights, and sponsorships. This extra revenue will be split between the owners and the players, which should lead to higher salaries for everyone involved.

There are also potential drawbacks to expanding the season. One is that it could lead to more player injuries. With two additional games, players will have to play through pain more often and they will be at a greater risk of suffering serious injuries. Another concern is that fans could become overwhelmed by too much football. With 17 games, there will barely be any time for fans to rest between seasons. The NFL will need to be careful not to overload its fans with too much football and risk turning them off from the sport entirely.

The NFL’s decision to switch to a 17-game schedule is a risky one, but one that could pay off in a big way if everything goes according to plan. Only time will tell if it was the right move for the league and its fans.

Why the NFL Made the Switch

The National Football League approved a new collective bargaining agreement in March of 2020 that included a provision for a 17th regular season game. The new game will be played on the same weekend as the conference championships, with the specific matchups determined by a rotation.

The NFL had been playing a 16-game regular season since 1978, when it switched from a 14-game schedule. But with the league now at 32 teams and with more games televised than ever before, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said it was time to add another contest.

“Our fans want more football,” Goodell said in a statement. “We will give our fans more primetime games.”

Goodell also noted that the extra game would help the NFL generate more revenue, which would in turn be used to improve player safety initiatives and benefits for retired players.

The switch to 17 games will take effect beginning with the 2021 season.

How the NFL’s Schedule Works Now

In 2021, the NFL regular season will consist of 17 weeks and each team will play 16 games. The additional week is a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the league to cancel the traditional bye weeks and schedule all 16 games in a 17-week span.

The NFL schedule is typically released in April, but it was pushed back to May this year due to the pandemic. The league has not announced when or if the traditional bye weeks will return in future seasons.

Since each team must play 16 games in a 17-week period, there will be some weeks where multiple teams have byes. In 2021, Weeks 5 and 11 will have six teams on bye. In previous years, bye weeks were staggered so that no more than four teams were off in a given week.

The NFL’s decision to add an extra week to the schedule has been met with mixed reactions from fans and analysts. Some argue that it gives players a much-needed break during a grueling season, while others believe that it dilutes the quality of play by forcing teams to play more games against tired opponents.

What do you think? Should the NFL keep the 17-game schedule or return to the traditional 16-game format?

Conclusion

In Conclusion, the NFL switched to a 17 game season in 2021. While there have been some changes to the schedule, the format remains mostly the same.