The NFL is on its way to an 18-game regular season. That much is certain. But longtime NFL voice Chris Berman believes it would already be here by now were it not for a fateful night in January 2023 involving Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
The Bills were playing in Cincinnati on Monday Night Football against the Cincinnati Bengals. After Hamlin tackled Tee Higgins, he collapsed on the field, suffering cardiac arrest. The game was postponed and eventually canceled. Thankfully, Hamlin was able to survive after his heartbeat was restored on the field and returned to play for the Bills for the next season and is still a member of their roster.
It was one of the most surreal nights in NFL history and a moment where the game took a backseat to a very real-life emergency situation. But according to Chris Berman, it also had a lasting impact on the NFL and its revenue pursuit.
Berman sat down for an interview with CNBC’s Alex Sherman when the topic turned to the NFL’s expanded schedule. The league is not only exploring adding an 18th regular season game, but also a greatly expanded international calendar where every team may eventually play one game outside the United States each year. Asked if the NFL is pushing too far, Berman stated that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is only doing his job in making the owners as much money as they possibly can.
“Do I think that’s the case? Roger’s goal is from all the owners, let’s make as much money as we can. That’s also fair. It’s his mandate. They pay him really well. He’s a great guy, I’ve known him long before he was that and he’s a regular guy,” Berman said.
He then shared his belief that the 18-game season would be a reality by now were it not for the Hamlin incident. And that his cardiac arrest episode slowed the NFL’s push to put more games on the calendar for fear of a potential backlash.
“The 18 games, ok, I don’t know this for a fact. We might have seen it by now had Damar Hamlin not almost passed away on the field,” Berman added. “That was a quiet down. Because they were already talking. None of those things get accomplished unless you have three or four years of, ‘we gotta get the players, let’s redo our deal.’ Now the contract runs out in ’30 or ’31 so at this point it’s ok, they had hoped to get it in, I think, by now. But after that, the public outcry, you want them to play more games? The NFL’s not blind. Those optics would have been horrible. Do I know this for a fact? No. This is Chris Berman, observer. Hmm. Let’s quiet it down for a couple years so now it’s back.”
The NFL first expanded the regular season to 17 games for the 2021 season. At his Super Bowl press conference, Roger Goodell pumped the brakes slightly on adding an 18th game, but it’s obvious that it is what the NFL wants because of the potential for increased revenue.
The NFL’s popularity is unmatched, but they have had more than their fair share of controversies throughout the years. Did the NFL not want to risk another one by trying for 18 games after the Damar Hamlin incident? It’s probably impossible to say for sure given all the intense negotiations that still have to take place to expand the schedule, even now. But Chris Berman has been associated with the NFL for decades and is probably at least familiar with the thinking throughout the league. The NFL’s thirst for revenue is seemingly never-ending, but maybe there are actually indeed some limits to it.