Roger Goodell defends Thursday Night Football flex proposal, NFL owners delay vote

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell spoke about a possible vote that would allow flexible scheduling for Thursday Night Football in Weeks 14 through 17. Here’s what you need to know:

• The vote aims to provide fans with quality matches later in the season.
• If approved, the league could switch teams from a Sunday afternoon game to a Thursday night game in Weeks 14 through 17 with 15 days’ notice. NFL owners have elected not to vote on this proposal yet.
• However, the NFL agreed to a procedure allowing each team to play in two short weeks. It used to be only one week.

the athleteInstant Analysis:

Why flexible TNF scheduling is discussed

Not everyone is a fan of the flexible Thursday night proposal and the idea of ​​teams playing more than one Thursday game. Players already hate playing games on Thursdays due to the short turnaround time and reduced recovery times. Giants owner John Mara told reporters he finds the idea “offensive,” and there has also been some concern that Thursday’s game show causes challenges for fans hoping to attend games.

But Goodell made it clear that the league, while always committed to providing the best product for audiences in attendance, and serving the larger audience, which is the television audience, is a top priority. That’s because TV revenue pays the machine.

Amazon paid the NFL $11 billion for the rights to the Thursday Night Games over 11 seasons, so the league and its owners are very excited about ensuring the company is given a very attractive rivalry. It remains to be seen whether 24 of the 32 necessary owners will vote to approve Thursday’s flexibility during the May meetings, but it’s clear why that possibility is being discussed. – Jones

The risk of going with flexible TNF scheduling

The decision could lead to higher ratings, which translate to greater financial returns in the long run, but there is already a risk, which involves more anger and isolation for the players, who already feel the league doesn’t care about their health and well-being. . Players began to express their discontent with the proposal on social media, but Goodell insisted, “I don’t think we’re putting Amazon on our players. We’ve always (were) looking at data about injuries and their impact on players.”

He went on to say that the players had expressed their agreement to the 10-day layoff after Thursday night’s games and concluded, “The players have their opinions. The coaches have their views. We have to try to balance all of that.” But in the end, the owners will get what they want. – Jones

what are they saying

“Getting the best matches for our fans is part of what we do. It’s part of what our schedule has always focused on. Felix has been part of that,” said Goodell. Before we made those decisions, I think we averaged, in the years we’ve done it, about a year and a half. It can vary in any given year. It’s very important for us to balance the season ticket holders and the fans inside the stadium. We have millions of fans who also watch on TV. Reaching them is a balance.”

Gödel later added that he did not see this decision as being against the interests of the players.

“We were always (looking) at the data on injuries,” he said. “That’s what drove our decisions for the first 12 or so years of Thursday Night Football and how it evolved. I think the data has been very clear: It doesn’t show a higher infection rate. But we realize weeks are shorter. We’ve been through this with COVID as well.” “.

Mara told reporters on Tuesday that he was “strongly opposed” to the TNF show.

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(Photo: Kirby Lee/USA Today)