San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman has never been a fan of Thursday games. The turnaround is too short for a game as physically demanding as football. The 49ers will play the Arizona Cardinals this Thursday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
What would Sherman like to see done about the weekday matchups?
"It would be for them still not to happen the way they are, as is," Sherman told reporters on Tuesday during the team's only day of media availability this week. "If a guy's coming off a Sunday game, and sometimes Sunday night games, to play on Thursday is still just a terrible turnaround. Guys have gotten it done, and obviously, guys have gotten hurt during those games."
What would Sherman like to see done about Thursday games? The league makes a lot of money from them, thanks to the television deals, so it is unlikely they ever go away.
"I don't have a great solution for you," Sherman continued. "Maybe a bye after, but that doesn't change how difficult it is going into it. If they could somehow have a bye week before, but that would still be a long week and a half.
"I don't have a solution. It's a difficult problem. Obviously, we'll look to address it in some way with the CBA."
Sherman laughs at the notion that the NFL is so concerned with player safety when compared to the potential for profit. Thursday night games are just one example of that. The league pushing for a 17- or 18-game regular season is another.
"I roll my eyes when the league talks about player safety, and then says, 'Oh yeah, we'd like to have 17 games or 18 games,' because they're talking out of both sides of their mouth," Sherman said. "And somehow, they distract the public and say, 'Oh man, it's good for everybody,' but it's really not. It's never good for players to put their bodies on the line for two extra games.
"That's the problems you run into when you say that, when you say, 'We really care about player safety. We're taking a stand, but hey, go out there and put it out there two more times for a check. We appreciate you.' That's just the way it is, and that's the way it has been. As a member of the union, you understand that."