The time has come for the NFL to eliminate playoff byes.
It is overdue.
The current format doesn’t make sense, either.
Sure, the argument is that 1 and 2 seeds make rare appearances together in the AFC, NFC championship games; but this is not the point. There’s nothing wrong with having 1 and 2 seeds play a first round game. It only means more playoff games for fans.
How to remedy the situation? Bring in 2 more additional teams to the playoffs from each conference for a total of 16, rather than 12 teams.
This is not so radical.
It will make the NFL more money because so many more teams will have a chance to make the playoffs.
Teams who may not seem to have any hope 10 or 11 weeks into the season could still be in the playoff picture. They can rally and still dream of championship success.
Who benefits the most? Fans.
Who keeps paying attention a few weeks longer, instead of throwing in the towel and starting to prepare for next year? Fans.
Who won’t like this? Traditionalists. It’s not even a long tradition. The current playoff format, including the byes, has only 21 years in existence (it began in 1990).
The four wildcards should be the ones with the best overall record, then best conference records. How difficult is this? It’s not brain science.
Byes serve no real purpose. If one uses the logic mentioned previously, the rarity of 1-2 matchups in conference championships, than what difference does it make, anyway? Have the 1-2′s play a first rounder. Maybe the first rounder will give way to more 1-2 matchups, or maybe there could be some awesome upsets and 7-8 seeds can take it to the house (the Disney house).
The NFL needs to mix it up some. Give fans more when there is nothing to lose. Four extra playoff games would suit any football fan. There’s no bible saying there have to be first round byes for the top 2 seeds.
The first playoff weekend of 8 games could feature Friday night games. Possibly, 1-2 seeds could get their choice of what day they want to play.
If Roger gets the message, maybe he can follow-through. He always talks about fans first. He is the one commissioner who speaks most often about them. Let’s see if he can back up the talk with action.
