The NFL Competition Committee had some open discussions about possibly shortening the NFL preseason to only three games during the NFL Scouting Combine.
ESPN’s Rob Demovsky wrote about some of the discussions the NFL Competition Committee had in the last week at the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Of the topics discussed, the most intriguing revelations from those meetings with the Competition Committee was the notion of shortening the NFL preseason to only three games.
Speaking on the behalf of the Competition Committee was Green Bay Packers president Mark Murphy. The Packers are in a unique situation this preseason, as they will play five preseason games because they were selected to play in the Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio on August 7th.
Packers head coach Mike McCarthy addressed what going to three preseason games could feel like, being obviously in favor of the change. “That would probably be a little more practical, especially with all the emphasis on player safety. They’ve cut back everything else. I wouldn’t be surprised if they go to three games. Three games with a two-week bye, with two weeks before the opener. That’s just my opinion.”
Murphy echoed McCarthy’s quote by saying, “I think there would be support for three…don’t play a fourth game and then you’d have an extra week. We’ve looked at different models, but I think that’s the one that makes the most sense.”
With the collective bargaining agreement heavily siding with player safety in recent years, it’s only a matter of time before the NFLPA opts for a three-game preseason. Then again, sometimes players that are looking to make either a 53-man roster or a practice squad may need that extra preseason game to put together a better body of work to help their case to make an NFL team.
However, it seems like player safety would trump potential job opportunities by cutting that fourth preseason game. The owners are smart and will find another source of revenue to make up for not having that fourth preseason game. An expanded regular season isn’t by any means on the horizon, but it feels like the days of four NFL preseason games are drawing to a close.