It's safe to assume that everyone would love to see fewer preseason games. Even San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has openly admitted that, if given a choice between four preseason games and none, he would pick none. Of course, two would be the sweet spot for him.
"Yeah, you absolutely don't need four preseason games," Shanahan said in August. "I'd rather have zero than four, preferably I'd like two. One to evaluate the people trying to make the team and then just one to knock a little rust off."
That could happen if the NFL finally gets its way. With the current Collective Bargaining Agreement nearing an end, one of the league's early asks in negotiations has been the expansion of the regular season from 16 games to 18 games.
The NFLPA is uninterested, noting that such a move would not be in the best interest of the players.
Unable to convince the NFLPA, as well as some owners, the NFL is willing to compromise and has shifted from an 18-game focus to a 17-game season. The league shared the new proposal with team owners this week at committee meetings in Houston, according to Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic.
An increase to a 17-game schedule would still include reducing the preseason by one game, maybe even two, which Shanahan would welcome. The NFL would also like to potentially add another team from each conference to the playoff picture.
The real question is what a 17-game season would mean for scheduling. You couldn't give each team the same number of home and road games. Perhaps the league sees this as an opportunity to have 16 games a year in U.S. cities without NFL teams or internationally.
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