Joe Burrow’s Endorsement Meets NFLPA VP Ryan Kelly’s Backlash Amidst NFL’s 18-Game Expansion Rumors

About a few months ago, Roger Goodell went to The Pat McAfee Show and aired out the idea of having 18 games in a regular NFL season. The commissioner mentioned wanting to increase the revenue to $25 billion this year and an 18-game season is a step in that direction. Joe Burrow surprisingly agreed to Goodell’s idea and immediately took to X saying, “18 games? 2 bye weeks.”

The debate has gone even further because NFLPA Vice President Ryan Kelly has expressed discontent about Goodell’s proposal. Goodell’s move to increase revenue became apparent when Amazon Prime and Netflix were announced as broadcasting partners for Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. However, not everyone seems to agree with the updated schedule plans.

The Indianapolis NFLPA rep. Ryan Kelly speaks up about the potential 18-game season

NFL on CBS post on X with captions, “Ryan Kelly, the NFLPA Vice President, spoke out against a potential 18-game season 👀.” Like many other players, Ryan Kelly is not happy with the decision. He voiced out his concerns saying, “Eighteen games sounds great when Roger’s saying it on Pat McAfee,” and added, “But until you’re the one that’s going out there and putting the helmet on for 18 of those games, then come talk to me.”

Roger Goodell wants the season to end before President’s Day and adding another game at the beginning may cause players to miss out on Labor Day. A solution to this could be deleting one pre-season game and having it played as a regular-season game. However, playing 18 games in a season increases the chances of getting injured and the Indianapolis Colts Center is not optimistic about the prospect.

“The fans, and rightfully so, shouldn’t know all the injuries we go through, but they don’t know what it takes to play on Sundays,” said Kelly. He further added, “I think it’s just too many games.” Some players won’t be able to spend Christmas with their families in full capacity this year because the Kansas City Chiefs are playing the Pittsburgh Steelers, while the Baltimore Ravens are playing against the Houston Texans just after the Chiefs game.

There also goes away Thanksgiving Day for some because the Bears are playing against the Detroit Lions, the Giants against the Cowboys, and the Dolphins against the Packers. However, making this year more difficult for the Chiefs, the NFL added the burden of them playing the Raiders on Black Friday, which will be streamed on Prime.

To tackle this 18-game season more effectively, Burrow had an idea. “Maybe you could do something like the first bye is kind of how we have it now, and the second bye everybody has it at once, and you make it like the Pro Bowl Week, like an All-Star break for the NBA,” suggested the Cincinnati QB.

But just like Ryan Kelly, other players in the league don’t feel optimistic about the commissioner’s new venture and the QB’s perspective of it.

The San Francisco 49ers are in two minds about the 18-game schedule

Brock Purdy and Nick Bosa also spoke their minds about the controversial schedule. The Super Bowl runner-up Purdy thinks if the league wants to get away with adding one more game, a bye week must be added simply because football takes a toll on athletes, especially their physical health.

“If that is the case, I think two byes would be nice, that kind of thing,” quarterback Brock Purdy told reporters on Tuesday. “It’s a long season. You go through so much physically and mentally, everything. But, if we’re going to extend it another game, I think another bye would be pretty nice.” But while Purdy was a bit polite in declining the proposal, the 49ers’ defensive lineman’s words were a bit direct.

“I don’t know how many games they could just keep adding. Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t know why one more needs to be added, but, yeah, it’s not my job to [decide that],” said Bosa and proposed to take away a game from the season rather than adding one by saying, “I think 16 [games], four, four, four, four was a good little setup, but it’s all good.”

If Goodell and his cohorts plan to take such an action, a lot of things need to be considered. Player compensation, medical insurance, the share of extra revenue, and perhaps incentivizing holiday games can be a move. While some would say that the players get paid millions of dollars to play football, their injuries aren’t often taken into account. What do you think about the expected changes in the game schedule? Let us know your thoughts below.