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NFL players know they have to give 100 percent every day they step on the field, knowing it’s a matter of keeping their job or having it taken by the next man up.
As a result, the average NFL career lasts only three seasons, both because of the elite talent pool and the injury risk associated with a high-octane contact sport.
The NFL, however, couldn’t do better from a business standpoint, as football fans crave more action every night of the season. This year, the 2026 season will begin on a Wednesday night, thanks in large part to the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers game in Melbourne, Australia, at 10:35 a.m. local time on Friday morning, which will be Thursday night at 8:35 p.m. ET in the United States.
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Dion Dawkins of the Buffalo Bills runs on the field before the Kansas City Chiefs game at Highmark Stadium on November 2, 2025, in Orchard Park, New York. (Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
No matter where or when, games will be watched, which is why the conversation about the 18th regular season game remains relevant as the league continues to expand its reach.
Buffalo Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins knows how exhausting a 17-game season can be for someone who is in the trenches when the ball is snapped.
“I think the world we live in is just a different type of world, right? Production, entertainment, sports. We’re part of this world where people want to see more football – they want to see it. So the 18th game is a nice business move as a league,” he told PK Press Club Digital in a recent interview, where he also discussed his partnership with Oral-B and Crest to impact families in need of dental cleanings.
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But while he understands the business side of why the NFL would want to introduce an 18th game into the regular season schedule, he believes a player’s perspective should also be listened to.
“The only con I see is guys’ careers are just getting shorter,” Dawkins said. “That’s not to say that one game is going to make it significantly shorter, but one game can change the entire trajectory of a person’s life. For example, if you go through a 17-game season healthy, you turn 18 and your body is ready to collapse, something happens. Then the course of your life is totally different.”
Of course, Dawkins understands better than most that being a part of successful Bills teams over the past few seasons means playing in the playoffs, which comes just after Week 18 of the wild-card round. However, teams will rest key starters like Dawkins if their top seed is clinched, although not all are as lucky over the course of the year.
Dion Dawkins of the Buffalo Bills before Super Bowl LX between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium on February 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, California. (Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)
Regardless, Dawkins believes “it will happen one way or another.” He just wants to make sure players like him are properly taken care of if that’s the case, especially from a financial standpoint.
“Our contracts are not fully guaranteed. There are good players, there are average players, there are players who are getting by. As long as guys are taken care of like they’re supposed to be, that’s our life. We’re athletes, and it’s not that I’m here for that, it’s going to happen anyway – [an] 18th match. And then 20 years later, guess what? We’re talking about a 19th, then we’ll talk about a 20th.…Then it’s like, ‘Yeah, we’re combat athletes all year round.’ But who knows.”
Dawkins added that NFL teams may use workload plays like NBA players do, but that’s probably not the case given that basketball players have 82 games during the regular season. They can spare a loss or two if that’s what happens on the field.
The NFL is different, as each game becomes more crucial than the next, even if the league considers adding another one to the regular season.
David White, who was acting executive director of the NFL Players’ Association before JC Tretter’s election, said during the week of Super Bowl LX that players “have no appetite for an 18th regular season game” despite pressure from the league to do so.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell then stressed that an 18th game was “not a given,” but owners, like the New England Patriots’ Robert Kraft, said that “every team will play an 18th.”
“Each team will go 18 [regular-season games] and two [preseason games] and eliminate one of the preseason games, and each team will play one game on the road every year,” he said on 98.5 The Sports Hub in January.
Dion Dawkins of the Buffalo Bills participates in the Pro Bowl Skills Challenge at the NFL Pro Bowl Games at Moscone Center South on February 2, 2026 in San Francisco. (Kara Durrette/Getty Images)
BRIDGING AMERICA’S SMILE GAP
While rest and relaxation are essential for NFL players during the offseason, Dawkins also makes sure to make an impact on the community.
It has partnered with Crest and Oral-B on their “Closing America’s Smile Gap” initiative, which aims to provide free dental cleaning to families in need through “America’s ToothFairy.”
As someone who is always finding ways to impact disadvantaged youth through her Dion’s Dreamers Foundation, Dawkins explained how improving access to oral health for children and families is important, especially since 50% of low-income parents will skip or delay their own dental care to get their children the care they need.
“It’s a no-brainer, a layup,” he said of the partnership with Crest and Oral-B. “For people who do what it takes to help, everything aligns.
“At the end of the day, one of the first things people see is the mouth, the teeth, the visual of your smile.… Sometimes some people are like, ‘All right, I just need to brush my teeth, so it’s all good.’ Sometimes you have to go to the dentist, do a cleaning, and the dentist has to be prepared and they have to prepare you through life to be able to smile. For Crest and Oral-B, that’s what the world is: teeth.”
