Super Bowl Champion Speaks Out Against NFL's Potential 18-Game Schedule
Earlier this week, CBS Sports' Jonathan Jones reported that and 18-game regular-season NFL schedule is in the works, and it could happen sooner than most people think.
"There is little question that the next collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and its players will include an 18th regular season game," Jones wrote. "That change is at least two years away - 2028 at the absolute earliest, 2031 at the latest - and it will come with considerable back and forth between the sides.
"The league will rid itself of one of three preseason games. A second bye week will be non-negotiable from the player perspective. The financial windfall, which is well north of an extra billion dollars in revenue, is obvious, but how the pie is split will be at the center of the discussion."
Though there are some benefits to the move - a second bye week, the removal of a meaningless preseason game, more on the line in the final weeks of the season in terms of playoff seeding - some players aren't exactly on board with the decision when it happens.
One of those players is Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco. The Super Bowl champion recently explained why he's not a fan of moving to an 18-game schedule.
"I don’t think people realize that when you put guys through an 18-game regular season schedule, I think what could happen is the playoffs start to suffer and you get teams that are so beat up by that point in the year that they’re not really at their best, so instead of getting top-level football you’re getting a couple teams going against each other at 75%, and basically, it becomes a war of attrition," Flacco told Front Office Sports.
Flacco also admitted without an extra financial incentive for the players, expanding to 18 games doesn't make much sense from their point of view.
"What you have to realize is that if there’s a whole extra week added on to the season, then the revenue’s going to go up, and naturally, the salary cap is going to go up," Flacco said. "So over time, you are going to be making more money, but it’s just like every other time that there’s more money in the pot: It usually goes to two or three guys, it doesn’t usually get spread out and diluted evenly."
There's also the concern that an 18-game schedule is just a gateway to a potentially larger schedule in the future - another point Flacco took issue with.
"It’s got to stop at some point," Flacco said. "What happens when we go to 18? Are they going to want 20? Are they going to want 22? We used to play 14 games before I was even born. At some point it has to stop."
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This story was originally published April 18, 2026 at 11:28 PM.