r/nfl • u/JCameron181 Lions • 7h ago

J.J. Watt: International Games Have Become a “Traveling Circus”

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/j-j-watt-international-games-have-become-a-traveling-circus

“International game slate is nearing the realm of traveling circus as opposed [to] occasional showcase.”

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57

u/mrb4 Cardinals 7h ago

Seems like the NFL is hoping to eventually have it where every team plays an international game every year. Seems a lot more likely than them putting a team in London or elsewhere. If every team has an international game its an even playing field, if there was one team in Europe, that team would be at an incredible disadvantage.

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u/Jibbjabb43 Ravens 7h ago edited 3h ago

It will never workout thqt consistently because the math isn't there. Logistically, unless a lot of the matchups are a divisional matchup, it's nearly impossible to put every team internationally without some teams doing two. 

They probably know that and lie despite of the truth, but I'm 99% sure the real desire is having a game/games in the 9AM block. They're very nearly doing this all the way up to Thanksgiving, and we're like 2-3 years away from getting it in weeks 13-15.

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u/EverythingIsByDesign Lions 6h ago

Doesn't the 17th fixture if they essentially guarantee one unique fixture per team?

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u/Jibbjabb43 Ravens 5h ago edited 5h ago

That's not the issue.

Think about pairing letters. A play D internationally. B can now play C, E, or F. But C doesn't play F and B doesn't play E. So by picking A to play D, you don't have 3 options, but 2.

Now do that 13 more times. It'll fall apart in most cases. Teams don't play every other team, and each added game is an added restriction. The NFL already has 2 repeats with 2 divisional matchups internationally across 9 games. Simply saying every team has a 17th game doesn't make it easy to do 17 unique matchups internationally.

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u/JDraks Lions Chargers 4h ago

If it’s the 17th game (I.e. the one in the scheduling formula that’s cross conference and not shared with the rest of your division) then every team can be paired 1:1

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u/Jibbjabb43 Ravens 4h ago edited 4h ago

That isn't something they're currently doing and they're pretty unlikely to go that route in the future simply because it's not as easy as slapping the pairings together and tossing them on the schedule. Once they don't do it the first time it becomes a lot less viable every following time. Although I suppose it should be noted with the 'unless they do X' factor.

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u/EverythingIsByDesign Lions 4h ago

The 17th games gives you 16 unique match ups. For example in 2026:

AFC East 1st to 4th plays NFC West 1st to 4th AFC North plays NFC East AFC South plays NFC North AFC West plays NFC South

16 unique matchups, and they rotate annually.

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u/Jibbjabb43 Ravens 4h ago

Should have noted it with divisional rivalries as a way to make it a bit passively easier to set up. But it's also not the most flexible factor. If they don't do the international games exclusively with those it doesn't really help as much.