A lot of you reading this would consider me to be a young NFL fan. I was born in 2002 and just turned 24 this month, but the 17-game NFL schedule still feels a bit weird to me. I grew up with the 16-game schedule and seeing teams finish 12-4 or 8-8, and even now, five years into the 17-game schedule, seeing 12-5 and 8-9 still feels weird.

Despite the 17-game schedule being so young, the NFL is already talking about expanding the schedule to 18 games. The only reason they haven’t already done it is because they need approval from the NFL Players Association, and they players are going to have some demands if the league wants to add yet another game to the schedule.

Earlier this week, we got a big update on the 18-game schedule and when it may happen, so let’s dive into the news and what an 18-game schedule would look like.

Will the 18-Game Schedule Happen in 2027?

According to a report by Pro Football Talk, it doesn’t seem likely that the NFL will expand to an 18-game schedule in 2027, but nothing has been solidified yet. PFT reported that the NFL owners have met twice this season, and are yet to settle on a date for Super Bowl LXII due of the possibility of an 18-game schedule being implemented next year.

In that same report, PFT reveals that, despite the fact that they haven’t settled on a date for the Super Bowl, it is unlikely that the NFL will expand the schedule to 18 games in 2027. The belief is, with JC Tretter taking over as the NFLPA’s executive director, there hasn’t been enough time to negotiate a new CBA and get approval on the 18-game schedule in time for next year.

For now, it appears we’ll have at least two more years of the 17-game schedule, but until the NFL locks in the date for Super Bowl LXII as February 13th, 2028, the door is still open for an 18-game schedule in 2027.

The 18-game schedule is coming. It’s no longer about “if” but “when,” and it could be as early as next year.

What Would an 18-Game Schedule Look Like?

What would an 18-game schedule look like? Let’s start with what we know.

There is probably a less than one percent chance that the NFLPA would approve an 18-game schedule without adding an extra bye week. So, the 18-game schedule wouldn’t just add one more week to the NFL calendar, it would actually add two. I don’t think the league would have much grievance with this, either. Their plan is to one day have every team play at least one international game a year, so adding an extra bye would allow everyone to have a break after their respective international game while still holding on to a normal bye while in the states.

Outside of adding an extra bye, there’s not a whole lot we know for sure. Would the league maintain their 3-game preseason? Or would they cut the preseason to two games? When they went from 16 to 17 games, they cut the preseason from three games to four, so why wouldn’t they do it again?

And if they cut a preseason game, do they entertain moving the start of the season up a week? It’s typically the second week of September, but if they move it up a week, it would add a really interesting dynamic to the Super Bowl.

NFL fans have been clamoring to have the day after the Super Bowl off of work. Heck, even non-NFL fans want that Monday off of work, because pretty much everyone goes to a Super Bowl party. Well, that could just happen with the 18-game schedule. If the NFL cuts the preseason to two games, moves the start of the season up a week and adds an extra bye for every team, the Super Bowl would fall on President’s Day weekend, meaning the majority of people would have that Monday off of work.

If the NFL follows this format, it feels like a win-win-win for the fans, players and league. The fans get the Monday after the Super Bowl off of work, plus an extra week of games. The players have to play an extra game, but an extra bye week more than makes up for that. And the league gets the added revenue of an extra game. Hard to go wrong with this plan.

The Cons

Alright, enough glazing the 18-game schedule. What are the cons?

Well, the obvious con for the players is that it adds another game. Most of these guys love playing football and would do it every day of the week, but there’s no denying the physical toll it takes on your body. Adding an extra bye would help, yes, but injuries can happen on any play, and by adding an extra game, you’re adding another 120+ opportunities for players to get hurt.

Staying on the injury conversation, an 18-game schedule also gives those who suffer injuries in the playoffs less time to heal before the next season. Let’s use Zach Charbonnet for example. He tore his ACL in the Wild Card round, and if the playoff games were pushed back a week or two to accommodate the extra game and bye week, he’d have two less weeks to recover. He’s already likely going to miss at least the first couple weeks of the season, but if it happened a week or two later, there’s a chance he could miss the first quarter of the year. Two weeks may not seem like a lot, but in the NFL where you need every win, it could be the difference in a 0-2 start or a 0-4 start.

Another downside to the 18-game schedule is the record book. The NFL record book has already been diluted by adding the 17th game, but if the league adds another game, the record book will surely be rewritten in the next 10 years. We still haven’t seen anyone break the single season passing yards or passing touchdowns record since the league expanded to 17 games, but it’s hard to see those, and other records, holding up with another extra game.

My Take on the 18-Game Schedule

I’m completely onboard with the 18-game NFL schedule, but only if the players get an extra bye week. As a fan, it’s just more football to enjoy, and as a writer, it makes my job more interesting for another week or two during the season. But they absolutely have to implement another bye week for the players, especially if they’re going to continue to add international games to the schedule.

An 18-game regular season may dilute the record books and could cause injury numbers to rise slightly, but I think the rewards outweighs the risks. It will generate more money for the league, bring more entertainment for the fans and would increase player salaries. Plus, if they follow the model I laid out, everyone will enjoy the day after the Super Bowl being a holiday.

Again, the 18-game schedule is going to happen sooner rather than later. It may not be 2027, but don’t be shocked if it happens before 2030.