Report: NFL to expand regular season to 17 games in 2021
Mark Schofield
December 27, 2020 10:08 am
The 2020 NFL season is coming to a close but the league already has its eyes on the 2021 campaign. To that end, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero are reporting that the NFL is “planning to expand the regular season to 17 games in 2021.” This move will generate additional revenue and perhaps lessen the impact of a decrease in the 2021 salary cap.
From the reporting:
The NFL has played a 16-game regular season since 1978, when it added two games to each team’s schedule. Under the new CBA finalized this past March, the league and/or clubs have the discretion to increase the number of regular-season games per club to 17 — but not more — at any time, in concert with a reduction in the number of preseason games to no more than three.
Though there was always support for making the move to 17 games sooner than later, a projected multibillion-dollar revenue shortfall caused by the COVID-19 pandemic increased the urgency of the situation for both NFL owners and the players’ union. The sides negotiated a deal in August that spreads the accounting for the shortfall over several years and prevents the salary cap from dropping below $175 million in 2021 — compared to $198.2 million this year.
The cap is still likely to drop significantly in 2021, per sources, but the 17th game as part of a new media deal could boost it above that $175 million floor. The union’s share of all revenue already was set to bump up from 47 percent to 48 percent in 2021, and the move to 17 games with a new media deal triggers a “media kicker” on top of it that further increases players’ share.
Adding another week to the season also accomplishes a goal many football fans have had for years. The Super Bowl would be pushed into the second week of February, meaning the Monday after the big game would likely fall on Presidents’ Day. Many have wanted this move to give fans a potential day off after the Super Bowl, and this could be a much-desired side effect of the move.
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