The NFL’s playoff format and schedule might undergo significant alterations soon.
If a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is reached by the players and owners, which is anticipated to happen within the next week, it could lead to drastic changes that would transform the NFL landscape.
One significant change would impact the NFL playoffs, with reports from ESPN’s Adam Schefter indicating that the number of teams in each conference would increase from six to seven. This adjustment would mean that only the top team from each conference would earn a first-round bye, and the wild card weekend would expand to six games instead of the usual four (three on Saturday and three on Sunday).
Schefter mentioned that both sides have already reached an agreement on this change, which is expected to take effect once the new CBA is finalized.
There are also discussions about extending the regular season to 17 games while reducing the number of preseason games to three. However, this particular change has not been confirmed yet and, if implemented, would likely begin in 2021.
According to sources at ESPN, the playoff format revision has been in agreement for a considerable time, with minimal opposition from either side.
If this rule had been in place during the 2019 NFL season, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Los Angeles Rams would have been the seventh playoff teams in their divisions. In contrast, the Chiefs and Packers would have missed out on their first-round byes and been required to play during the wild card weekend.
