Re: The exhibition season has always been insane.

Quote
oldschoolramfan
IMHO.......NFL can do 3 things to really improve the game for the fans.

1. Shorten the time for watching the games.
YES! They finally get it. The new "Ideas" to shorten game time is perfect. Thinking outside the box and coming up with simple solutions is going to make the games much more enjoyable and less time consuming to watch.

Now, 2 more thins to get done.

2. Eliminate Pre-Season Games.
High School, College....There are no Pre-Season Games, they all count. You practice, maybe get a scrimmage or 2 during summer workouts, make your cuts, then go play. Simple. There is no "Boring, save the Starters" games.......You start out of the gate with ALL GAMES count. No increase to more games per season, 16 games and playoffs is enough.

3. Increase roster from 52 players to 62-64 players.
Gives coaches a chance to develop talent and allows for more flexibility with injuries. At 66 talent and players, you are 3 deep at EVERY position....Perfect for developing and having solutions for injuries, which will occur throughout a football season.

I like your ideas . . .

In a sport fraught with injuries, it's beyond stupid to have games that don't count. Of course, there's never a right time for an injury, but you add an insult to it when the game doesn't even matter.

Only reason they keep it is to maximize profits. But that's short-sighted, with more than a few stars being knocked out for the year before the season even starts.

I'd also change overtime rules: Base it on time periods, not who scores first. Take a page from the NBA, etc.

I think the players should give up a little bit too, as far as the length of free agency. Not sure the perfect year for this, but I think teams should be able to retain players longer, after drafting them. At least five years before any other team can go after them. No more "restricted" designation. Something like five or six years, and then the player is free to sign with another team.

Gotta go to all grass fields, too, and ban spearing in all situations, for all players. I read that Seattle is teaching tackling with the shoulder, not the helmet, and that actually should be the norm.