The NFL schedule was always going to increase to 17 games when the collective bargaining agreement was signed ahead of the 2020 season.
According to multiple media reports, that’s exactly what the league plans to do for the 2021 campaign. While it will be a boon for revenue streams, players don’t seem to be too happy about that possibility.
That includes New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara. He took to social media on Sunday to absolutely blast the new 17-game schedule. "Sh-t dumb as hell," he tweeted.
Obviously, the revenue share aspect of the new CBA took into account the possibility of a 17-game schedule. Even then, players are putting everything on the line on a weekly basis. By the time November rolls around, pretty much every player in the league is banged up to a degree.
For Kamara and his fellow running backs, this is magnified even further. Outside of offensive linemen, they take the brunt of the punishment on a weekly basis. Even though he’s not considered a workhorse in the truest definition of the term, Kamara has touched the ball nearly 1,000 times in his four-year career.
How is the new NFL schedule going to look?
While debate rages behind the scenes, we got a firsthand look at how the additional game will look for each team around the NFL. This is based off reports that AFC teams will host the 17th game in 2021 before the NFC takes its turn in 2022, per CBS Sports' John Breech:
- Green Bay Packers at Kansas City Chiefs
- Chicago Bears at Las Vegas Raiders
- Minnesota Vikings at Los Angeles Chargers
- Detroit Lions at Denver Broncos
- Seattle Seahawks at Pittsburgh Steelers
- Los Angeles Rams at Baltimore Ravens
- Arizona Cardinals at Cleveland Browns
- San Francisco 49ers at Cincinnati Bengals
- New Orleans Saints at Tennessee Titans
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Indianapolis Colts
- Carolina Panthers at Houston Texans
- Atlanta Falcons at Jacksonville Jaguars
- Washington Football Team at Buffalo Bills
- New York Giants at Miami Dolphins
- Philadelphia Eagles at New York Jets
- Dallas Cowboys at New England Patriots
From the perspective of fans, this could be a whole heck of a lot of fun. The Packers and Chiefs doing battle in what could be a potential Super Bowl preview at Arrowhead Stadium.
Two former No. 1 picks in Kyler Murray of the Cardinals and Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield going up against one another. Heck, there’s a chance that former Ohio State teammates Joe Burrow of the Bengals and likely 2021 top-five pick Justin Fields will go up against one another should the San Francisco 49ers select the latter after trading up for the third selection.
None of this changes how players perceive an increased schedule. They are now going to get paid less per game than under the previous format. It’s rather clear that Kamara is not alone on this thought process.
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