Aaron Rodgers’ idea to play every NFL international game in one week deemed ‘nonsensical concept’

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Aaron Rodgers thought he was cooking when he proposed that the NFL schedule all of its international games in one week.

However, it sounds like no one at the NFL is interested in that recipe.

After the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 16-10 win over the New Orleans Saints in Paris last weekend, Rodgers lamented that there was once talk of scheduling all of the NFL’s international series games in one week to create a unique experience, implying that it failed to happen because financial concerns outweighed safety ones.

“There was talk about doing a week — an international week — where you had games in 16 different places, and you just added an extra bye week,” the Steelers star quarterback said. “So you play 16 regular-season [weeks]; you have two bye weeks — one of those weeks would’ve been an international week.

“I think it would’ve been phenomenal for the game. Now, the owners wanted to push for 17 games for the extra revenue and because they care so much about player safety, but it would’ve been nice.”

The NFL currently has nine international games across the season, ranging from Australia to Brazil to London to Madrid and elsewhere, often causing issues with team schedules and bye weeks. Rodgers’ plan would potentially eliminate those concerns.

“I think there’s great opportunities for expansion and those things,” he said. “It’d be awesome to see them have an international week, because I think it’s great for the game and the expansion of the game.”

Rodgers appears to be alone in those sentiments.

According to Mark Maske at Front Office Sports, Rodgers’ proposal landed with a thud among NFL executives and team owners.

“You’d be competing against yourself,” a source told FOS. “It’s a nonsensical concept.”

Sources familiar with the league’s collective bargaining process also rejected Rodgers’s claim that the league had “talks” about the plan.

“That’s bizarre,” another source told FOS. “I’m quite sure we never talked about a 16-game season with two byes and 16 international games in one week.”

In fact, the current CBA states, “In any League Year in which the NFL regular season consists of seventeen games, the extra week shall not consist entirely of international games.”

If Rodgers isn’t happy seeing nine international games spread across the NFL season, he won’t like the news that the league is considering expanding to 10, the maximum allowable number of international games under the CBA.

The good news for the Steelers is that, no matter where they end up playing next season, they can break out their Peaky Blinders costumes again, and it will make just as much sense as it did in Paris.