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“What About the People Playing…”: Patrick Mahomes and Star Chiefs Teammate Already Object to NFL’s New Decision After Winning the Super Bowl

Published 03/29/2023, 1:07 PM EDT

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The NFL Annual Meeting this year in Phoenix brought with it some explosive changes and some anticipated updates. The league’s proposal to have more Thursday Night Football scheduling, however, causes the biggest uproar. Even the reigning Super Bowl champions aren’t happy with the way things are turning out. Patrick Mahomes and his wideout Marquez Valdes-Scantling vehemently protested the impending amendment.

And it’s not just the two Lombardi-winning athletes. Many from the league’s ownership side were also outspokenly against the flex scheduling proposed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Teams could play twice on Thursdays from next year

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According to the proposed plan that has currently been tabled for further discussion until May, some of the Sunday night fixtures stand to be rescheduled to Amazon Prime’s Thursday Night Football fixtures. This cuts down on the team recovery duration and also presents a precarious situation for the fans who are more in tune with the Sunday football tradition.

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On being asked if the league is prioritizing its relationship with Amazon over the players, Roger Goodell said, “I don’t think we are putting Amazon over our players. We’ve always been going at data with respect to injuries and their impact on players. That drove our decisions throughout the first 12 or so years of Thursday Night Football and how it’s evolved. I think the data is very clear. It doesn’t show a higher injury rate.”

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Moreover, citing that many players and teams appreciate the mini-bye or the 10-day break after, Roger said that he has to look out for everyone’s needs. However, New York Giants owner John Mara doesn’t see it that way.

Patrick Mahomes reacts

I think its really inconsiderate to our ticket holders. To flex a game back to Thursday night, to me, is just abusive. I am adamantly opposed to it,” the half-a-billion-worth Big Blue Co-owner said. And while Mara was more concerned about the ticket holders, the players wondered who was looking out for them.

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Patrick Mahomes reacted with a single emoji that said a thousand words. And his fellow Super Bowl LVII-winning Kansas City Chiefs teammate Marquez Valdes-Scantling also protested, tweeting, “What about the people playing the game?” Former Washington QB and analyst Robert Griffin III wrote “so much for player safety” on Mahomes’ post.

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Others to voice their discontent included Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay and Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett. Furthermore, the league has to keep in mind the uproarious feedback in mind when they reconvene in May to decide the future of Amazon Prime’s TNF broadcast. What do you think about this new schedule? Is the league being inconsiderate towards the players and focusing on corporation profits? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by:

Soumyapriyo Ganguly

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Soumyapriyo Ganguly is an NFL writer at Essentially Sports. He holds a degree in Economics and Statistics from the Indian School of Business and Finance. Rivu is a sports nerd with his favorites being Soccer, American Football, Basketball, UFC, and Formula 1.
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Edited by:

Nidhi Rana