Remove Divisions in NFL

[Epstein's Mother]

I'm OK with the divisions.  I just don't think that division winners should automatically get a home game.

[Matt_In_NH]

The divisions are great...weird stuff happens for playoff births and it is bound to hurt any team at some point.  The only way the Bills miss is if they have 7 losses, the team is much better than that, they will have done it to themselves. 

[gonzo1105]

Yea this is a if we lose tomorrow type post. Don’t lose to Zach Wilson, MAC Jones, or have 12 on the field and we wouldn’t have to play this out 

[Billl]

25 minutes ago, bobobonators said:

Every year we see teams with losing records making the playoffs. Or we see teams just have a cakewalk to the playoffs bc they play in a TRASH division and have automatic 6 wins (Chiefs past few years). 
 

Remove the divisions. Keep AFC/NFC. Keep the same 18 week/17 game schedule every team plays every single team in their conference 1x and then do 2 games vs opposite conference every year to maintain some inter-conference rivalries alive. 
 

Removing the divisions and going with 2 conference automatically eliminates teams with losing records making it in over teams with winning records, and it also eliminates bias by forcing all teams to have the same schedule  (minus the 2 games vs opposite conference).

 

Thoughts? 

 

 

Imagine complaining that other teams have the advantage of playing in weak divisions when a week from today will mark the 50th anniversary of the last time a team in the AFC East other than the Patriots won a Super Bowl.

[JohnnyBuffalo]

I think the division title should not dictate seeding or home field advantage but that’s it.    
 

[Carmel Corn]

I'm all for removing the divisions.....I'd go as far as saying to that in hockey as well.  Now if they could only do something about us having to play all our games against KC in Arrowhead.

[Dr.Sack]

Divisions are a good thing. 6-0 every year if you build a team to dominate common foes. Then all you need is to win is 3 to 5 games to make the playoffs. The Bills should be 5-0 in the division if they could win in OT, and hold Mac Jones from driving 75 yards in under 2 minutes. 

[bobobonators]

5 minutes ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

In NFL history, 6 teams have made the playoffs with a losing record. And 2 or those were in the 82 strike season. 

Let me clarify or edit my original post once and for all. Almost every year we see teams with a worse record, host a home playoff game, over a team with a better record only bc they won their division. At times, teams with worse records also make the playoffs over teams with better records. 

[Behindenemylines]

We should have a setup like soccer. A two tiered system with relegation. 
…and flopping,  much more flopping

🤣😄🥴

[bobobonators]

11/17 games are played against teams outside the division. So continuing to reward teams who play in crappy divisions and punishing those who play in competitive divisions seems inequitable at best. Giving so much weight to division winners when 11/17 games are played outside the division seems a bit counterintuitive. 

[Billl]

1 minute ago, bobobonators said:

11/17 games are played against teams outside the division. So continuing to reward teams who play in crappy divisions and punishing those who play in competitive divisions seems inequitable at best. Giving so much weight to division winners when 11/17 games are played outside the division seems a bit counterintuitive. 

If a team can’t win a 4 team division, then why do they deserve any kind of preferential treatment?

[Low Positive]

What's stupid is that just because we happened to lose to NE and Denver, who happen to be in the AFC and beat the Giants and Bucs, who happen to be in the NFC, we might miss the playoffs. Switch those four games, and I believe that the Bills are in.

[bobobonators]

Just now, Billl said:

If a team can’t win a 4 team division, then why do they deserve any kind of preferential treatment?

I’m not advocating for preferential treatment. Eliminating divisions would actually do the opposite - it would automatically create equity across the entire conference bc all teams would play the same schedule for 15/17 games. 
 

 

[Special K]

When the Bills went to four straight Super Bowls, they were in the worst division in football at the time.....they had a free 8 wins over the Colts, Pats, Jets, and Fins...I bet you weren’t complaining about weak divisions then.

[Mr. WEO]

2 minutes ago, bobobonators said:

11/17 games are played against teams outside the division. So continuing to reward teams who play in crappy divisions and punishing those who play in competitive divisions seems inequitable at best. Giving so much weight to division winners when 11/17 games are played outside the division seems a bit counterintuitive. 

one of your premises almost never happens, the other one..you use KC, a team that has been to 5 straight AFCC games, won 3 and 2 SB, as an example of cakewalk teams.

 

Maybe the next “final edit” of this thread would be to delete it.

[Billsfanatic8989]

Had we not lost to the Jets, Broncos and Pats, there is a very good chance we are the one seed resting starters tomorrow. 

 

 

[Dr.Sack]

5 minutes ago, Behindenemylines said:

We should have a setup like soccer. A two tiered system with relegation. 
…and flopping,  much more flopping

🤣😄🥴

Relegation would be a good thing.
 

The issue is the PA would never allow it as revenues are currently shared across the league. Creating a 2nd league or lower division would put contracts into jeopardy. Players would get screwed and in terms of draft fairness how would draft picks be distributed?

[BigDingus]

You know, I was ready to crap all over this idea, but then I realized this could be the solution to the NFL's expansion problem.

 

People keep thinking they'd need to add 8 teams at once to preserve balance, but with this they'd only have to add 2 (and you could still do a round-robin conference schedule).

 

Still prefer the normal setup, but this wouldn't be completely terrible either. 

[Einstein]

I say keep the divisions and allow the division winner to get into the playoffs, but make the seeding just based on record. Aka, a division winner could be the 7th seed even.

[GunnerBill]

I don't love the status quo. But I don't see a better solution. And until I am persuaded there is a better alternative I'd be minded to stick with what we have.