Apparently, the owners want the steady hand of Roger Goodell to remain at the controls as they continue their search for the holy grail known as the 18-game schedule.
And if a second bye week (the NFL has actually been there and done that in 1993) is the only thing standing in the way ... then nothing is standing in the way; and not for nothing, but the CFL has had three bye weeks since 2018 (except for 2020, when the entire season was canceled due to COVID, and 2021, when only a 14-game slate was played, again due to COVID).
A few other presents could also be placed under the NFLPA's Christmas tree, in addition to a second bye week and a deleted week's worth of exhibition; oops, we mean "pre-season" games, to entice the union to the bargaining table.
These include:
1. With two bye weeks, that means a 20-week season (more, more, more ... how do you like it, how do you like it?) — and since 20 is 11% more than 18 (the current number of weeks in the regular season), that can mean an across-the-board 11% base salary increase for all players.
2. Moving the Hall of Fame Game to the Thursday of the same week as the rest of the league begins their exhibition schedule; thus two such games for all teams instead of two teams playing three and the others playing only two (once again, the CFL plays only two of these games — over three weeks since that league has an odd number of teams).
3. Speed up the game — and make it safer — by keeping the clock running on incomplete passes and most out-of-bounds plays, except in the last two minutes of the first half and the last five minutes of regulation. The clock can even run on point(s) after touchdowns, with the same exceptions — after all, if games can be won or lost on the outcome of a conversion attempt, then why shouldn't the clock continue to run on those as well? Not only that, but it will bring back 4:00 PM games, instead of 4:25 PM games (call it a plank in the MTNFLGA platform — Make the NFL Great Again).
The whole point in having 18 games is to keep hope alive for as long as possible for as many teams as possible: Not a single NFL team has ever made the playoffs after starting 0-5; only one — the 1992 Chargers — has done so after starting 0-4; and just five (not counting the '92 Chargers) after starting 0-3. Increasing the "distance" of the "race" will make these comebacks much more frequent.
But at least both sides in the NFL are open to reason. Baseball? They're talking about adopting a "mercy rule!"
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