Longer Regular Season Likely Would Bring Expanded Rosters

The NFL's franchise owners can offer the union more than just additional money to existing players when it comes time to attempt to secure the necessary approval of the Players Association for expanding the regular season to 17 or 18 games per club.

The owners also can offer more jobs.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a radio interview Thursday with host Dan Patrick that an increase in the number of regular season games likely would lead to an increase in roster sizes.

The players "would really benefit from this from the standpoint of the fact that they would get 60 percent of increased revenues," Goodell told Patrick. "That's to their advantage. I also believe that we would really engage in some serious dialogue here with respect to minimizing what happens in the offseason leading up into the preseason and also the likelihood is that this could, from a player's standpoint, lead to expanded rosters. From a union standpoint, it's not very often that you see new jobs being created in labor-management negotiations."

The union must approve any change in the number of regular season games.

The owners seem likely, as part of their labor negotiations with the players, to try to go to an 18-game regular season beginning in the 2010 season.

By Mark Maske |  August 29, 2008; 10:39 AM ET  | Category:  League , Union
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