After a proposed expansion to an 18-game regular season received little support, NFL owners are reportedly now considering a 17-game schedule and a reduction in preseason games — or elimination of the preseason altogether.
According to a report Thursday by The Athletic’s Daniel Kaplan, owners were told of the need to cut down from 18 games to 17 in their proposal to the NFL Players Association following committee meetings in Houston this week.
“Not enough owners support 18 (games) and players would not go for it either,” a source told Kaplan.
According to Kaplan’s report, the preseason would be cut back to two or three games per team, though ESPN’s Adam Schefter said sources told him the preseason could be eliminated completely.
The change in proposals is part of the ongoing negotiations between owners and the union on a new collective bargaining agreement. The current CBA is set to expire after the 2020 season.
The proposed 18-game schedule was first brought up by owners in July. The owners even proposed expanding rosters and limiting players to 16 games in the 18-game season in an effort to simultaneously add games and address player-safety concerns.
But the union has said players don’t want an expanded regular season, particularly without getting a “significant increase” in their percentage of revenue generated by the games, Schefter reported.