The NFL’s justification for giving the Jets seven standalone games in 11 weeks – they’reThey kind of owe us one“—was ill-advised. It also obscures a deeper problem of giving the third-place team, a non-playoff team, too many games outside of the Sunday afternoon slot.
The league likes competitive balance. That’s why the worst team gets the first pick in the draft, and why teams have three games tied to where they finish in their division.
This is not how the NFL schedules games. It makes a projection based on which teams will get the biggest ratings, regardless of what they did the previous season. This year, the NFL’s expectations for the Jets include getting them into prime time early, before the wheels come off. Or before Aaron Rodgers blows another tire.
Of course, this approach won’t help keep Rodgers healthy. He has played four total snaps since his last game with the Packers in January 2023. In September, he will Three matches in 10 days To start the season. Twice in the first nine weeks, the Jets will play with only three days off between games.
The league itself has resolved the question of whether short-week football is a bad idea by choosing a statistic based on the in-game injury rate with six days between games versus three. This ignores the issue of how players’ bodies feel on Thursday, after playing on Sunday. (The NFL uses the same blinders on the turf versus turf issue; the injury rate is the same, so who cares if they have to crawl out of bed in the morning after playing on turf?)
“Ask the players,” one coach noted recently, on the question of whether there is a difference between Sunday-to-Sunday and Sunday-to-Thursday football.
The same source, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the topic, added: “Another example of how we talk about the health and safety of players but it is easy to compromise it for money.”
In this particular case, health, safety and competitive balance are compromised. Given the reasons for the draft system and the selection of opponents, taking the third-place team and giving them seven independent games in 11 weeks ignores the issue of competitive balance. It adds an undue burden on a non-playoff team as of 2023.
Right or wrong, the league likes to iron things out. She wants fans of all non-qualifying teams to believe their team can make it to the playoffs. But it also wants to get the highest ratings possible for each independent window.
So to hell with competitive balance, as is the case with the Jets. Because the planes: (1) are in New York; (2) Aaron Rodgers; And (3) it tends to turn into a slow-paced train wreck every year. Let’s load it up on the patriotic windows early – even if it’s just lube until the skid marks show.
Jets fans should be upset. The Jets should be upset. Rodgers must be upset. They fall victim to the fact that people will want to watch them for the same reason they watch car racing.
To inevitable collapse.
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