Joe Burrow Says Players Need Extra Bye To Deal With 18-Game Schedule, But That Raises Issues

The NFL's seemingly inexorable march toward an 18-game schedule isn't necessarily on the front burner, but it's definitely on the stove and Joe Burrow made it clear on Tuesday it would have to include another bye week for players.

"That's definitely something that we've thought about," Burrow told reporters. "You know, 18 games is definitely a big ask. That's not easy having that extra game.

"Obviously, it would be great for revenue. But I feel like adding that bye week, if you're going to have the 18-game schedule, is pretty critical for our bodies."

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Burrow: Multiple Byes ‘Critical’

The NFL currently plays a 17-game schedule after adding one in 2021. The league plays those 17 games in an 18-week regular season and commissioner Roger Goodell has discussed privately with owners and even publicly the idea of expanding to an 18-game schedule.

But Goodell has mostly talked of subtracting a preseason game and replacing that with a regular-season game. The NFL currently plays three preseason games.

Burrow believes players will need two bye weeks at minimum because only one bye can put some teams at a disadvantage.

"You keep that bye week and some teams have the bye in Week 5 or Week 6, and then you're going 12 or 13 games in a row," the Bengals starting quarterback said. "That's not easy. Probably a Thursday night game thrown in there, too. So that's never easy.

"So those two byes are pretty critical."

Miami Dolphins running back Mercury Morris runs with ball ina 14-7 win over the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII on January 14, 1973 at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. (Photo by Nate Fine/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***

NFL Schedule Once Ran 14 Games

Quick reminder: The NFL once upon a time played 14 regular-season games in a row. No bye. And that came after five preseason games.

Burrow is not pitching specific solutions but seemed to be thinking aloud about how adding a bye might work within the confines of a season that already runs from September to February, when the Super Bowl is played.

"Maybe you can do something like the first bye is kind of like how we have it now and the second bye everybody has it at once, and you make it like the Pro Bowl week or something like an All-Star break for the NBA," Burrow said.

While it seems more than probable the NFL will expand to an 18-game schedule in the next few years – perhaps as early as 2025 if the NFL Players Union agrees -- the stoppage of play for a Pro Bowl week in the middle of the season is hard to fathom.

ORLANDO, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 04: Baker Mayfield #6 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and NFC runs the ball against Kyle Hamilton #14 of the Baltimore Ravens and AFC during the second half of the 2024 NFL Pro Bowl Games at Camping World Stadium on February 04, 2024 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

Pro Bowl Games Ratings Dropped

The Pro Bowl has devolved into something other than professional football in recent years. There is now zero contact in the "game," which is now a flag football outing. 

And ratings have declined.

The NFL's 2024 Pro Bowl Games averaged a combined 3.1 rating and 5.79 million viewers across ABC, ESPN, Disney XD and ESPN Deportes, giving it the smallest audience on record for the NFL’s annual All-Star event.

The NFL nonetheless pitched the event as a success because the Pro Bowl Games still rate higher than other All-Star events by the NBA and NHL.

But that's apples to oranges. The NFL wouldn't be looking to keep ratings at all-star game levels in the middle of or late in the season. It would be looking to keep ratings at a level customary to regular-season games. 

There would be other problems with players opting out in order to, you know, rest on the league-wide bye week.

So giving the whole league a week off, say in early November, is practically a non-starter.

Whatever way the NFL fits two bye weeks into the regular-season is a scheduling problem. Burrow is more concerned with how players would survive the pounding of that extra game.

(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

Burrow Overcomes ‘Difficult Injury’

He knows a thing or two about those challenges. He is among the 20 percent of NFL starting quarterbacks trying to come back from significant injuries in time for the 2024 season.

And it's been rough at times.

"I think I'm fully cleared for everything other than contact right now. That'll come in the next month, probably," Burrow said of the surgery and rehabilitation he's experienced since a ligament injury affecting his right wrist prematurely ended his '23 season.

"This was a difficult injury. It's been a tough several months. Physically, it's not the worst injury I've had. I've been through much tougher things, so that's been a positive.

"It's definitely been one of the most challenging parts of my life for the last several months. We're getting through it and continuing to improve, you know, mentally and physically every day. But it's definitely a challenge and a process."

Burrow said the wrist has "good days and bad days." He declined to say if he feels pain when he throws the football but was open about the fact he's definitely been in pain at times.

"There's always going to be some pain when you're coming back from injury," Burrow added. "Throughout the rehab process, that's something you have to battle through if you want to come back from injuries like these. This isn't a minor injury by any means."