Before the NFL increased the length of the regular season by one week, the NFL moved the trade deadline from the Tuesday after Week 6 to the Tuesday after Week 8. Now that the NFL has added a week to the regular season, multiple teams want to move the trade deadline.
One proposal entails a one-week delay. The other proposal would result in a two-week delay.
During a Thursday conference call regarding the proposals that will be considered next week, a question was asked about these efforts to push the trade deadline back.
“Historically, the trade deadline has been very early in our league, earlier than others,” Competition Committee chairman Rick McKay told reporters. “And it was that way always from a fear of we want our league to be the most competitive league, top to bottom, week to week, of any league there is. We think from fan engagement standpoint, the fact that every fan wakes up in every city, all the way through the whole season, believing their team has a chance and believing their team’s all in to win is a great thing.
“We then moved it back and experimented with it and then moved it even further. And found that — you know what? — it actually served us well. It created some trades. It’s worked pretty well for us [at] about the 50-percent mark of the season. Every team is in it at that point. So basically what you’ve got this year is two teams, one trying to move it one week, one trying to move it two weeks. And it will be interesting to see the discussion.”
It’s more than two teams. One team, the Steelers, has proposed moving the deadline until the Tuesday after Week 9. Multiple teams — the Browns, Lions, Jets, Eagles, 49ers, and Commanders — have proposed a two-week delay.
“I wouldn’t want to give you the [Competition] Committee’s position,” McKay said. “I would tell you that there was a lot of discussion of it. A lot of discussion of it in the General Manager’s advisory committee. Some very strongly in favor, some not. And I will be interested in seeing the discussion. But that has always been the concern, that if you take it too late, then all of a sudden the teams making the trade have different reasons for the trade. One is to win this year, one is to win next year. Which — that’s fine, but when that ‘win next year’ ends up with a team that’s not competitive, that was always our fear. That has not happened with moving it to Week 8. I can assure you of that.”
First, the Competition Committee presumably is against it, or it would have been a Competition Committee proposal. Second, teams that are opting to trade current assets in the hops of winning next year ABSOLUTELY is happening. Every year.
McKay later was asked why there are two different proposals.
“The reason there’s two proposals is literally those two teams see it differently,” McKay said. “One wants to add one week later, one wants to go to two weeks later. You’d have to ask them why they propose it that way.”
We already know why the Browns proposed it that way. G.M. Andrew Berry explained it on PFT Live from the Scouting Combine. They proposed one week to account for the 17th regular-season game. They proposed a second week in anticipation of an eventual 18th regular-season game.
McKay and others who were on Thursday’s call might know that. They have no reason to make the discreet (for now) plan to add an 18th game a headline until they’re ready to commence their effort to add an 18th game.
And that effort is coming.
