The NFL Christmas schedule means some players aren't so happy

Patrick Mahomes was happy about the chance to play again on Christmas Day.

“Until I realized it was Wednesday,” the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback said Monday.

Under the Christmas tree, the players of the four teams in action on Wednesday will not expect any presents, but rather severe bruises and aches.

To play on a Wednesday, four teams took the field on Saturday – the Chiefs, Houston Texans, Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers host the Chiefs at 1:00 p.m. ET, while the Ravens and Texans square off in Houston (with a halftime performance from Beyoncé) at 4:30 p.m. ET.

A four-day turnaround is becoming increasingly common in the NFL. Teams playing “Thursday Night Football” often have to prepare in this time frame. But the league’s desire to play on Christmas Day despite the holiday’s longstanding association with the NBA, coupled with the introduction of a new media partner in Netflix, made Wednesday’s games a reality.

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“I think it’s really cool to play the first Netflix game, to play in front of the whole nation on Christmas Day,” said Mahomes, who jumped at the chance to recap last year’s loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, their finale, on March 25. December to make up for defeat on the way to a second straight Super Bowl title.

His teammates don’t necessarily agree.

“When it came out, I thought it was terrible,” safety Justin Reid said, according to the Kansas City Star. “And I still think it’s terrible. But it is what it is.”

Defensive tackle Chris Jones, who is inactive for Wednesday’s game because of a calf injury, said he will handle scheduling with the NFL Players Association.

“I think that’s a conversation that should be had this offseason,” Jones said.

The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 prevents the NFL from scheduling Saturday games until the second weekend in December. December 21st – against two of the three College Football Playoff games that day – was the day the four teams were scheduled to be deployed on Christmas Day to give them the minimum rest necessary for the teams to have less than 96 hours After they left the field, they were able to take to the streets.

“I think we have a good understanding of how to play short-week football,” Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s chief media and business officer, said last month while speaking on a panel at Sports Business Journal’s Innovators Conference .

He added: “I don’t feel like we’re splitting the atom here. … I think we’re always thinking about where are the best windows to play from a media perspective, the competitive nature of the game and the health and safety of the games are paramount. We started playing short week games in 2006, with six games, and little by little we got smarter and better at it.”

For the Chiefs it’s six games in 31 days. This is their third short week in that span since playing the Raiders on Black Friday. They are the first team since the 1927 Yankees – and not the famous “Murderers’ Row” Major League Baseball team with Babe Ruth and Lou Gherig – to play every day of the week except Tuesday in the same season.

Mahomes is dealing with a sprained ankle; Head coach Andy Reid walked from Arrowhead Stadium to the Chiefs’ practice facility on Saturday for a few hours of preparation. At this point in the season, every team is dealing with some kind of illness.

“It’s part of what you have to do,” Reid told reporters on Monday.

After Saturday’s loss to the Ravens, Steelers defenseman Cam Heyward was asked if it was unfair to have this compact schedule at this point in the season.

“No,” he replied. “This is what you signed up for. It’s football. No matter who it is, you sign up for it every day. I know everyone in our locker room does that. The schedule has been drawn up. You just play. If we won three (in a row), would we really be talking about it? We had chances.”

The team has discussed the schedule challenges ahead, Heyward said, and those who valued their professionalism will find a way to recover on Sunday as they begin their preparation for the Chiefs or review their performance against the Ravens.

“That’s how it works for us,” Heyward said. “We don’t make excuses. We process what we have and move on.”

At least Baltimore and Houston had a bye in Week 14, giving them an opportunity to recharge and get healthy again late in the NFL schedule. The Chiefs (Week 6) and Steelers (Week 9) weren’t so lucky.

“Every team that plays on Wednesday has to deal with this, so we’re not complaining,” Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton said. It’s just part of the business.

“It’s kind of nice to get them out of the way – just boom, boom, boom – three games done and now after this week we have Cleveland and we’re going to the playoffs, but like I said, we’ll take it… I I wanted to say a week at a time, but actually it’s just one game at a time. We play about four times a week, but I don’t think anyone thinks about it. We just go out there to play the game.”

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The NFL Christmas schedule means some players aren’t so happy

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