FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Welcome to my new series of blogs on fascinating sports topics.  I will be talking about a certain sports topic in each blog and will give my opinion on it as I see it.  Please understand, this is just my opinion and intended solely for the entertainment of the readers.  Fell free to disagree with anything I say in these blogs, but please feedback as to why you disagree, so as to enlighten all of us. 

This week's topic is one that is popular with alot of people, and can make the most popular sport in America that much better.  My topic is the NFL schedule change.  it has been proposed that the NFl change to a 17 or 18 game schedule.  An 18 game scheudle is preferred because it will still give even amounts of home and road games to each team.

This is being applauded by NFL fans and personnel alike.  Well, dont include this diehard NFl fan in that group.  I have reasons why changing to an 18 game schedule, as exciting and fun as it may be, holds no water with me.

First, the whole reason behind this proposal was the whining and crying of fans who were upset that their star players were getting season ending injuries in the preseason.  Well, news flash NFL fans, football is the MOST injury prone sport in America to date.  And whether you took an unmeaningful game and turned it into a meaningful game, football is still football, and that season ending injury still happens, no matter what.

Let's take for example, the injury to Osi Umenyiora.  Yes, it happened in a preseason game against the Jets and the Giants didnt play the Jets at all in the regular season.  So the logic alot of you fans use is "Well, if that's a season opener, it's not against the Jets, so the injury doesnt happen."  Insert buzzer sound here.  Wrong.  Umenyiora had a torn lateral meniscus in his knee.  It just so happens, torn ligaments in the knee are the MOST COMMON injuries in football.  So who cares that it happened in the preseason and against the Jets?  No matter who the Giants would have played and regardless of the level of the importance of the game, in all likelihood, Umenyiora suffers that injury anyway and is still out for the season.  Which doesnt change the outcome for the Giants of how their season turned out.

So injuries are not a valid reason for switching to 18 games. That argument holds no weight for me.

Second, there is a system the NFL currently uses for scheduling.  A team plays their division opponetns twice a piece.  That's 6 games.  Then they play an entire division in the opposite conference and in the same conference as them.  That's another 8 games.  The remaining two games are against one team from each of the remaining two divisions in the same conference and are teams that finished in the same place in their division at the end of last regular season.

Let's use my Cowboys as an example.  They play the Redskins, Giants, and Eagles twice (6 games).  This year, they play the AFC West teams, and NFC South teams (8 games).  The Cowboys finished 3rd in the NFC East so they play the 3rd place finishers from the NFC North and West (Packers and Seahawks).  Now if you switch to an 18 game schedule, who the hell are gonna be the other teams the Cowboys play and how will you determine it?  It ruins the system.

You see, the system is each division you play rotates, so you get to play every team in the NFL over the course of 4 years.  An 18 game schedule fudges that system up.  So, breaking up that system is retarded in my opinion.

Third, there has been talk of extending the Super Bowl to mid-February near President's Day.  That's two weeks later than normal, and why? Oh, maybe because of 2 more games.  There are MANY reasons why THIS is a bad idea:  more snow playoff games, and weather should NOT be affecting outcomes of games, PLAYERS should. 

Also, this would interfere with the NBA All-Star Game, and the ratings of the Super Bowl would go down.  Why? here's why: generally ANYONE watches the Super Bowl, even if they aren't football fans. So if you take basketball fans that don't like football (and there are plenty of them), instead of them watching BOTH they watch the NBA All-Star Game and the popularity and ratings of the Super Bowl take a tremendous hit.

I get why this is being done though, so Super Monday (which would consequently be President's Day) will be a day off, which everyone wants.  Well let me tell you something.  Most people get President's Day off ANYWAY. Wouldn't you ratherhave TWO Mondays off in February? After all, it is a short month.  And Obama is a proponent of letting Super Monday be a day off nationwide.  So why settle for just one day off when we can have two?  It makes no sense.

Finally, and this is more tongue-in-cheek, why allow for 0-16 to be topped? Because if anyone can do it and go 0-18, it's the Lions.

 Now yes, I would love an 18 game schedule because of the excitement and the intrigue, but how many of you notice how much fatigue sets in during the playoffs?  Adding to the rigorous schedule would not change that.  I would love an 18 game schedule, but we are better off as fans, and the NFL is better off as a sport, to keep it at 16 games.

And that's how I see it.