The NFL could add two playoff teams as early as the 2015 season.
Multiple sources told Mark Maske of The Washington Post that a proposal to increase the number of playoff teams from 12 to 14 is gaining support among owners and NFL executives.
“I think there’s a lot of momentum for it,” one anonymous source said. “I don’t know for sure if the votes are there yet (among the owners) or not. But there is momentum. A lot of people seem in favor of it.”
NFL owners will reportedly “consider” the proposal during the owners meeting in late March, and they might even bring it to a vote.
Six games would be played on the opening weekend under the proposed format, with only one team per conference receiving a first-round bye. The games likely would be spread out over three days, with two being played on Saturday, three on Sunday and one on Monday night.
The movement to expand the playoffs reportedly has the support of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
“I do think the commissioner wants it,” another “person familiar with the matter” told Maske. “I’m not exactly sure when it might get voted in. But if the commissioner wants it, I assume it’ll happen at some point.”
Under the current system, six teams from each conference qualify for the playoffs, with the top two seeds in each receiving a bye into the divisional round.
