NEW ORLEANS -- NFL Players Association executive director Lloyd Howell Jr. pushed back against NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's recent statement that safety data doesn't discourage expanding the regular season.
"Frankly, we're not sure how he's reaching that conclusion based on the data we've been given access to," Howell said during the NFLPA's annual news conference Wednesday.
Howell was asked about the NFLPA's current stance on an 18-game season two days after Goodell's state of the league news conference. Goodell said Monday that 18 regular-season games and two preseason games "might be a possibility," citing safety data that put concussions at a historically low level during the 2024 season.
Howell said players are against another regular-season expansion after adding a 17th game in 2021.
"No one wants to play an 18th game. No one," Howell said. "Seventeen games is already, for many of the guys, too long. Seventeen games is also so lengthy that you're still dealing with injuries going into the next season. So, there are a variety of issues that hang off of the length of the season before any formal negotiations."
Howell and Goodell said this week that any discussions regarding 18 games has been informal. The current CBA, which was ratified in 2020, expires after the 2030 season. The length of the season is written into the CBA and would have to be voted on and agreed to by both the owners and the players.
"Any commentary outside of a formal negotiation is just commentary," Howell said. "It's a players' decision as to what they will agree to do or not."
Howell said several issues would have to be addressed before any true negotiations could be opened into expanding the season. He cited the number of bye weeks, roster size, practice squad size, the length of the offseason and the number of international games played, which the CBA currently caps at 10.
"When you talked about 18 games, what does the international composition look like, and where? There's evidence that ... they would like to go as far away as Australia, the Middle East, India, you name it," Howell said. "They truly want to look at the international [aspect] of the game. So how does that fit into 18 games?"
Howell said there is "more to be done" regarding the schedule and amount of travel teams are asked to do, citing multiple teams playing three games in 10 days and the Green Bay Packers flying to Brazil and back within 48 hours this season. The safety of playing surfaces was another concern he raised.
Howell also spent time discussing revenue sharing and player benefits, saying "the league has never been more valuable," because of the NFL's growth and the recent rule change that allows private equity firms to buy small stakes in teams. The Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins are two teams that have sold minority ownership stakes to private equity firms.
He said he would like to see players share in that revenue one day.
"The new role of private equity in the league has made me think about how every other industry incentivize their top talent by giving them equity, so that when the organization becomes more valuable, the employees share it," Howell said. "We look forward to working with our members to determine how we can explore compensation structures that provide the right performance incentives while also providing them income security they deserve, including benefiting more from the value they create."
The NFLPA also gave its annual Alan Page Community Award to New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton. The award, voted on by the players, is given to a player who makes "an exceptional impact off the field in his community." Other finalists included New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis, Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry, Indianapolis Colts center Ryan Kelly and Minnesota Vikings safety Camryn Bynum.