Jerry Jones claims 18-game NFL season suits 'everyone's best interests' despite pushback

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has defended the NFL's proposed move to an 18-game regular season -Credit:Getty Images (Getty Images)

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has defended the NFL's proposed move to an 18-game regular season, insisting that the expansion would be in everyone's best interests - despite growing opposition.

When Jones first proposed the change in 2018, the NFL played a 16-game regular season alongside four preseason fixtures. His preferred format would have increased the regular season to 18 games while reducing the preseason to two, keeping the overall schedule at 20 games.

The league has since moved to a 17-game regular season and three preseason games, meaning the same adjustment would now involve replacing one exhibition fixture with an additional competitive game.

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Jones believes the NFL could be closer than expected to introducing an 18-game regular season, suggesting the change could arrive as soon as next year, although he acknowledged it would need to be negotiated with the players. The Cowboys owner argued that reducing the preseason would allow teams to be better prepared for the opening weeks of the campaign, adding that an expanded schedule would be in everyone's best interests, including the players

"I don't think we're far away from it. I don't know what 'far away' means. Next month? No. Next year? Maybe.," Jones told 105.3 The Fan. "That has to be negotiated with the players, but it's in everybody's best interests.

"You'd cut back on the preseason games and have teams more developed in the first few games, which is what you're trying to achieve during the preseason. It's in everybody's best interests, and certainly in the players' best interests, in my mind. Having said that, I would anticipate it coming."

Momentum towards an 18-game schedule could be building, with the appointment of JC Tretter as the new executive director of the NFL Players Association and the league's continued expansion into international markets potentially adding to the discussion.

However, an 18-game regular season is far from guaranteed, with the NFL Players Association publicly opposing the proposed expansion. The union also resisted the move to a 17-game schedule before it was introduced in 2021, while Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes voiced his concerns about further expansion in 2025. “I’m not a big fan of it," he said. “I think that you’d have to find a way to have more bye weeks, more time spread out.”

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has also proposed introducing a second bye week, suggesting the existing breaks could be spread throughout the season before adding another around Week 13. He also floated the possibility of holding a Pro Bowl-style event during the additional break.

Support for an 18-game regular season, meanwhile, appears to be gaining traction among NFL owners and executives. "I like it for the long-term growth and development of the league," New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said.

"To keep our league healthy and grow revenue. I think preseason games have not been what it used to be. Changing to 18 games, and having that real content, and being mindful of player safety, I personally would like to see us have a second bye week."

However, not everyone within the league is convinced that an 18-game regular season is the right move. Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam described the discussions as "a little premature", while New Orleans Saints head coach Kellen Moore pointed to the demands on players across an entire campaign.

"If you do preseason and you go all the way to the Super Bowl, it's whatever, 23, 24 games. So, there's a lot of games on the calendar," Moore said.

Source: Sports