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Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes would not be thrilled if the NFL were to add an 18th regular-season game to the schedule.
Mahomes, 29, said that he wants to see the best players play in the biggest games, and the addition of another game could add more injuries.
“You’ve seen the amount of injuries that have kind of piled up there at the end of seasons, and you want to have the best players playing in the biggest games,” Mahomes told CNBC.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) reacts against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on February 9, 2025, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)
“If there were a way to get to 18 games, I’m not — I’m not a big fan of it. But if there were a way, I think you got to add some bye weeks in there to give more time for guys’ bodies.”
“I think that you’d have to find a way to have more bye weeks, more time spread out,” Mahomes said.
New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton disagreed with Mahomes, as he said an additional bye week would not be beneficial.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes chews his mouthguard during warmups before an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024 in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann, File)
“I don’t know about two (bye weeks) because like getting yourself going after a bye is a hard thing,” Slayton said in an appearance on “NFL Spotlight With Ari Meirov” in June.
The NFL’s data shows that there are more soft tissue injuries after a bye week, according to Ari Meirov.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) reacts in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome. (Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)
Part of the reason the NFL would want to add an 18th game is because it would slide the Super Bowl to President’s Day weekend and allow fans to have the following day off work after the big game.
Only time will tell whether a potential 18-game schedule will include multiple bye weeks.
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