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There's this from ESPN's Adam Schefter:
NFL and NFLPA are on verge of pushing back draft to May and moving up start of league year to before combine, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 20, 2013
NFL and NFLPA are close to enacting these calendar changes for the next three years.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 20, 2013
This has been discussed before. It's an idea that's been thrown around so it's not coming totally out of left field. I just didn't think it could be happening so soon.
Questions I have:
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So, free agency would be in February? The new league year also marks the start of free agency. It's usually in the first or second week of March. Moving it ahead of the Combine, which begins in late February, means free agency would take place sometime in February. I guess you'd have the Super Bowl ending in the first week of February and then free agency in the second or third week. I'm not sure that I like the idea of the first couple weeks of free agency getting interrupted by the Combine. Free agency is more important and more entertaining than the Combine.
The Draft would be pushed back a few weeks? The Draft is held in the last week of April. Moving it into May is really just moving it a couple of weeks. Because nothing truly meaningful happens between the draft and training camp (besides OTAs) I don't have much of a problem with moving the draft to May.
As one of my SB Nation colleagues pointed out today, it would eliminate some of the dead time in May, which isn't so bad. I'm not really opposed to this schedule. Then again, I'm a blogger looking for things to post every day. As someone else pointed out, it also means coaches would get less time with the draft picks before the start of the season. What do you think about this idea?
More reading:
That time Andy Reid started with an onside
Caption this picture of Andy Reid