NFL 18th game proposals hit major hurdle: “Nothing will move forward”

The NFL Players Association (NFLPA) has dismissed suggestion the the league is set to extend the regular season schedule to 18 games, claiming that players have “no appetite” for an expansion.

For years, the prospect of an 18th game has been floated by team owners as part of talks with the NFLPA. Speaking at the union’s annual Super Bowl week news conference on Tuesday, NFLPA interim executive director David White issued a strong response.

“Our members have no appetite for a regular-season 18th game,” White said. “The 18th game is not casual for us. It’s a very serious issue. It’s something that comes out of negotiations, and nothing will move forward until players have the opportunity to account for all of those factors, take that into consideration and then through negotiations, agree or not to the 18th game.”

White went on to reference safety concerns as a reason for caution around expansion. As a spokesperson for the players’ union, White said: “As it stands right now, players have been very clear they don’t have any appetite for it.”

What did Robert Kraft say about the 18th game?

White’s comments come less than a month after New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft gave a very different impression of situation. In a conversation with 98.5 The Sports Hub in January, Kraft presented an outline for the supposed new structure.

Kraft claimed: “Every team will go to 18 [regular-season games] and two [preseason games] and eliminate one of the preseason games. Every team, every year, will play one game overseas.”

The Patriots owner appeared confident at the time but there is clearly still work to be done to get the approval of the players. Speaking at the pre-Super Bowl events on Monday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell admitted that the 18th game was “not a given” and talks were still ongoing.

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