2x SB Champions Slams Roger Goodell for His Latest Take on NFL Pre-Season: “With All Due Respect…”

Roger Goodell‘s latest opinions have incited dissent from a two-time Super Bowl champion. The NFL commissioner revealed that a week of the preseason might be replaced with a regular game in the future. His statements were met with a plethora of disagreeing opinions from analysts and players alike.

As Goodell expressed how he’s “not a fan of the preseason.” His dismissal of the importance of the exhibition games for the players’ development is being widely debated on social media. One such opinion was voiced by the Patriots center, David Andrews.

David Andrews counters Roger Goodell’s proposal

Goodell opined that the preseason would be better cut short and instead have 18 regular season games on the Pat McAfee Show. While he clarified that there aren’t immediate plans regarding the matter, he would prefer the Super Bowl weekend to line up with the Presidents’ Day weekend. This revelation had a long-time loyalist of New England candidly express his objection on his Instagram story.

Andrews replied to a post announcing Goodell’s views, highlighting the importance of the preseason for the new and undrafted players entering the professional sphere. He feels that the two games before the regular season are essential for them to get accustomed and gain experience, which might help them enter the roster and better their play. The center wrote, “With all due respect you don’t need it because you’re not suiting up and there’s a lot of veterans who don’t. But there’s a lot of young players and undrafted guys who need it to develop and prove they deserve a chance to play. But hell maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about.”

The Patriots star emphasized that while a lot of established players might not be benefitting from the preseason, it remains an important time for the players who might not get a chance to showcase their potential in the regular season. Andrew’s not alone in this take either, with an NFL journalist also coming out in his support.

Albert Breer calls Goodell’s preseason views “dishonest”

The league’s big man cited “just picking quality” as a reason behind his 18 regular season games proposal. He also feels that the fans aren’t particularly fond of the preseason either. However, Albert Breer questioned Goodell’s quoted intentions and instead opined that the commissioner views it as “another money-making opportunity on the calendar.”

The NFL’s all-time high viewership in the past few years is no secret. This year’s Super Bowl broke records, becoming the most-watched broadcast since the moon landing of 1969. The league saw the addition of a regular game back in 2021, becoming the 17-game format we see today. Breer feels that the 18-game proposal is another attempt to cash in on the rising popularity of the sport and score an increase in revenue. He further calls the notion that the change wouldn’t make any difference to the players as “intellectually dishonest.”

“Acting as if it’s “20 games” and it makes no difference to players whether those games are preseason or regular season is intellectually dishonest. And to put it nicely, you’re pretty dumb if you buy it,” said Breer.

Though Roger Goodell shared that there aren’t any concrete plans for moving forward with the league’s new game format, the proposal has already incited strong responses from the league entities. It will definitely be interesting to see whether we will get to see its implementation in the future and how it will affect the athletes.