Arthur Scheel III
Mrs. McQuillan
English 1520
18 October 2010

The Future of the NFL-Expanding to 18 games Last week while attending the second home game for the Detroit Lions, I decided to observe the entire experience an NFL game has to offer. The atmosphere and sounds of the game were profound; the yelling, screaming and cheering for their teams to do well; chatter from competitive conversation involving opposing teams fans; the sound of the whistle blowing on an unwanted penalty, or a long touchdown run from your favorite player, all of these situations make the NFL experience enjoyable to any fan. An NFL football game takes even an average fan and places them on the field; experiencing the action and intensity, observing the scenery, and brings back past playing days of your more die-hard fans, as well. Football brings a sense camaraderie between everyone associated with the game. Anyone can picture himself or herself standing under center taking a snap, while the center hikes the ball and immediately blocks a defensive player, so the quarterback can hand the ball off to the running back, or fake the hand-off and throw a long pass to an open receiver downfield. The smell of the hotdogs as you walk to your seat, to the vendors yelling out,” Miller Lite, Coors Light, Budweiser!” fans can envision in their minds having a hot dog and a beer as they watch the game. The excitement that fans get while shopping for their favorite player’s jersey or purchasing memorabilia to remember the game, brings them closer to the game. The early tailgaters grilling food, socializing with their friends, listening to the music with their hatchbacks up, and even throwing a football in an open parking lot, the NFL gives fans a variety of exciting alternatives to enjoy a football game. The scenario I described above is the very reason why the NFL is the most popular sport in America. An NFL game is intriguing, compelling, adventurous, and for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon, fans can live the life of an NFL star. For these very reasons, fans enjoy the experience the NFL is able to provide them, whether the game is broadcasted on national television, or they are packing up their cars and driving to the stadium to attend the game. All teams in the NFL play a football game once a week, so if someone’s favorite team was upset by an inferior opponent, or a team dominated their game the previous week, the NFL leaves fans anxious in anticipation for the next opportunity to battle on the gridiron. An avid fan cannot wait for the NFL season to start, and dreads the moment the season comes to an end. So I ask the question, would it be beneficial for the NFL to expand or lengthen its season? The NFL has the shortest regular season schedule of any of the major sports in America, including baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer. With home games in a season, an average fan has minimal opportunities to attend or even watch their favorite football team. Because there are so few games relative to other sports, the outcomes of NFL games matter greatly to fans and to the sport; much more than an outcome of a game in basketball or baseball (Paolantonio). The NFL has gone through many changes in its course as a professional sport. It has expanded its season from ten games to twelve, twelve games to fourteen and fourteen games to sixteen games to keep up with the demand of a sport that has been on fire with popularity since its existence. The last time the NFL expanded its regular season was in 1978, when the season went to sixteen games (Clayton). At that time, the NFL changed its rules to allow teams more offensive flexibility. They added another official on the field; they were adopting a form of instant replay, and were growing with the changes that were demanded from their fans. (Clayton). In almost every instance, the NFL has benefited from its own growth as a professional sport. It has been twenty-five years since the sport expanded and