Over the years, there have been some calls for the NFL to abandon its current draft structure and adopt a lottery system like the NBA.
So far, there has been no traction on a possible change, but that doesn’t mean it will never happen. In the past, commissioner Roger Goodell has nixed the idea of a draft lottery, but today, he had a different take on the matter.
In an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Goodell at least appeared marginally open to the idea of a lottery, if the situation calls for it in the future.
Via Pro Football Talk:
“The Competition Committee talks about it on a I would say a regular basis,” Goodell said. “I haven’t heard it in the last couple years, but I never say never about any of those things. It may come a time where we think it’s appropriate.
“We don’t now, we think that the system works really well the way it does. Our teams, as you know, they’re not into tanking. These teams work and play hard, and they play hard no matter the circumstances, and that’s something that we’re really proud of in our game. Our league’s never been more competitive. And even when we went to the 17 games over 18 weeks, you saw that competition right down to the final weekend, right to the final game, almost to the final play. And they didn’t have to do that, but they did it because that’s the way they compete. I’m really proud of that. I was incredibly proud of not just the quality of our game this year, but the competition and the way they all played right to the end of the game.”
Now, considering the current system incentivizes teams losing, and ex-Dolphins coach Brian Flores is alleging in his class action lawsuit against the league that his former boss offered him money to lose, we don’t feel as confident as Roger does about saying teams don’t tank.
If we had to guess though, the NFL will not be going to lottery format just yet. There’s no reason to change what is already working, but that doesn’t mean they won’t feel differently in a few years.
Particularly if the league feels it can make a boatload of money hyping up and televising the lottery drawing the way the NBA does.
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