News of 17-game NFL season could come this week

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Official news of the NFL adding an extra regular season game for the 2021 season may come this week, according to a new report from Adam Schefter.

The move may have been accidentally leaked by Steelers owner Art Rooney last week, according to ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. The switch to a 17-game season has been long expected, along with a corresponding change to only three preseason games per year. According to Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport, the extra game will be an AFC vs. NFC matchup for each team.

As buzz surrounding the impending decision has grown, extra details have come out about the new 17-game season. To start, the Bears will play the Raiders as their 17th opponent, per CBS. Further, all NFL teams will be required to play international games, according to the Sports Business Journal. A formal rotation for international games would be created, with each team required to play one home game abroad every eight years.

If you’re wondering how this could affect ticket prices, the Bears already assured season ticket holders last month that prices would stay the same, regardless of whether a 17th regular season game would be added to the schedule.

The NFL has played a 16-game regular season since 1978. Before that, teams played 14 regular season games.

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