# An idea for a 17th NFL game. Adding a yearly neutral site "rivalry" game. How would you set this u **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [October 7, 2019, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424 "2019-10-07T16:04:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2019, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424/21 "2019-10-09T18:09:05Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > Uh… did you just miss one of the biggest rivalries in the NFL? Falcons v. Saints needs to be a rivalry game. > > I think the rivalry games need to be played at college stadiums. Otherwise, nothing would make sense. A college stadium that was just in use the previous day? Trying to negotiate a neutral site game and also work around the college schedule sounds awful. Plus, many college stadiums don’t sell alcohol nor do they have the arrangements with the official NFL team hot dog supplier or all the team affiliations written into the contracts. Plus, many college stadiums wouldn’t have the parking or tailgating facilities. While it’s usually a wink and a nod, many campuses prohibit open containers of alcohol. I just don’t like the expansion of the NFL schedule in general. The Redskins were using quarterbacks that weren’t even in the league at the end of the last season. I remember the Browns were starting nobodys after the Manziel blowup a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2019, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424/22 "2019-10-09T18:24:21Z")
I like the idea of adding an extra week, and have two bye weeks per team. Drop a preseason game. You still have 16 regular season games per team but the meaningful football season is a week longer. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2019, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424/23 "2019-10-09T18:41:49Z")
They tried two bye weeks before, and as I recall it was quite unpopular with the fans. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2019, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424/24 "2019-10-09T18:59:57Z")
I got bored at work so I wrote a script to get the distance for every NFC to AFC team. Here’s my 17th game based on adding the least distance traveled (I went ahead and moved Raiders to Vegas) Jets vs. Giants 0 miles Chargers vs. Rams 0 miles Ravens vs. Redskins 28.97 miles Browns vs. Lions 90.16 miles Colts vs. Bears 163.67 miles Jaguars vs. Buccaneers 171.79 miles Texans vs. Cowboys 229.84 miles Raiders vs. Cardinals 247.39 miles Patriots vs. Eagles 251.03 miles Steelers vs. Panthers 363.28 miles Titans vs. Saints 469.61 miles Bills vs. Packers 479.2 miles Dolphins vs. Falcons 593.96 miles Bengals vs. Vikings 603.71 miles Broncos vs. Seahawks 1020.06 miles Chiefs vs. 49ers 1486.56 miles Average Distance 387.45 If someone wants to see if they can find a lower average, here’s the data. > **[NFL Distances](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QoDFmX4x4MdI6BTEWjRVteTUtcddrhTLxpGS9sGR3cs/edit?usp=sharing)** > > Sheet1 > > Club,Dallas Cowboys,New York Giants,Philadelphia Eagles,Washington Redskins\*,Chicago Bears\*†,Detroit Lions\*,Green Bay Packers,Minnesota Vikings,Atlanta Falcons,Carolina Panthers,New Orleans Saints,Tampa Bay Buccaneers,Arizona Cardinals\*†,Los... ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2019, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424/25 "2019-10-10T01:10:54Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > I like the idea of adding an extra week, and have two bye weeks per team. Drop a preseason game. You still have 16 regular season games per team but the meaningful football season is a week longer. Yeah, they pretty much have it perfect now with being able to start the season right after Labor Day and often the conference championship games fall on MLK weekend. The Super Bowl falls in early February, right when most people have given up Dry January and their eat healthy resolutions, but before Ash Wednesday. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/an-idea-for-a-17th-nfl-game-adding-a-yearly-neutral-site-rivalry-game-how-would-you-set-this-u/841424.md?page=1)