Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com lays down a potential plan for a 17-game NFL season. Potential switches to the schedule could include:
- 17 regular season games
- two preseason games (instead of four)
- a second bye week, thus pushing the Super Bowl to Presidents’ Day Weekend
There would be a possible 16 neutral-site games, allowing the NFL to expand anywhere. Florio suggest London, Mexico City, China, and Australia.
NFLPA president Eric Winston recently discussed the addition of an extra game with FOX Sports 910 Phoenix (via Florio).
“As far as expanding regular season games, I just don’t see what the use is at this point,” he said. “We’ve got a great game. 16 games is plenty. . . . I don’t think there’s a lot of guys around the league that are interested in playing more games. I don’t know how it makes sense.
“I never say never about anything. . . . To me if just doesn’t seem to make sense, but you never know what comes down in the future.”
Let’s check out some more assorted notes from around the league…
- The Jaguars worked out a trio of defensive lineman this week (via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle on Twitter): Da’Quan Bowers, Tim Jamison, and Ishmaa’ily Kitchen.
- If Brock Osweiler plays well this weekend, Troy Renck of the Denver Post opines that the Broncos quarterback should start the following week against the Patriots. This would give Peyton Manning extended time to recover from any lingering injuries.
- Jets defensive back Calvin Pryor had a tumultuous rookie campaign last season, and the second-year player has missed three games recovering from an ankle sprain. Still, the 23-year-old has seen several changes in himself, making him confident that he can transition back to the lineup. “Maturity,” he told Justin Tasch of the New York Daily News. “Not being late to meetings and not doing things the wrong way. I feel like that’s the biggest thing.”
I think Calvin Pryor’s struggles as a rookie were overstated, especially considering how the secondary cratered as a unit. That being said, this year he has been much more active, especially in coverage. The Jets defense has tailed off the past few games, but Pryor has been terrific when he stays on the field.