George Kittle wants 2 bye weeks, and you should, too

Appearing on Laugh Out Loud’s ‘Cold as Balls’ Podcast, 49ers tight end George Kittle told Kevin Hart he thinks the NFL schedule should adopt two bye weeks.

Any NFL schedule consists of a long season. And it got longer last year with the addition of a 17th regular-season game.

Granted, the current construct agreed upon between the owners and players union only added this game by subtracting a preseason contest, shortening the exhibition from four games, as was the case prior to 2020 when the pandemic canceled it altogether, to just three.

No one complained about that.

However, that fourth and final preseason bout almost never featured players who’d be suiting up as starters during the regular season. As such, tacking on an additional regular-season game would subject players, particularly starters, to even more wear and tear.

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle thinks it’s a bit too much without the NFL schedule dishing out some further accommodations.

George Kittle advocates for a second bye week on NFL schedule

Kittle joined comedian and actor Kevin Hart on the Laugh Out Loud network’s Cold as Balls Podcast, not surprisingly featuring both taking a nice icy bath, one that’s frequently necessary for players rehabilitating after a tough game.

“There’s a huge physical toll,” Kittle told Hart. “And, like, 17 games is a lot. It’s a lot of games with one bye, whether it’s Week 4 or the bye is Week 11. I’m advocating for two byes.”

It’s not too big a shocker, at least from a player’s perspective. In addition to every team having to play a Thursday Night Football bout, the short week proves to be even more taxing on the necessary rest and recovery after the previous weekend’s bout, adding the extra 17th game is notably difficult, too.

“If you can get that to happen, it’d be cool,” Kittle told Hart.

Why fans should agree with George Kittle

The league might not openly embrace two bye weeks for each team. But in the overall picture, the regular season would be stretched out one more week anyway, likely cutting into January even more and extending the NFL’s reach into the new year.

One could suggest starting the regular season a week earlier to accommodate this, however, summer heat and humidity across much of the nation might make this a bit more difficult.

Yet that’s not the reason why fans should embrace this idea.

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For starters, an extra week of meaningful football would always be welcomed, satiating that never-ending craving. And the league would benefit, too, by getting one more week of national attention.

We all know the NFL won’t act unless it sees more money come its way.

On top of all that, the added bye week would give all players an additional chance to rest and recover, meaning the quality of play on the field would increase, too, and there’s be a step away from the sloppiness and injury attrition that seems to have grown in recent years with more Thursday night games and less focus on player health.

Good suggestion, George. We’ll pull for it, too.