13 minutes ago, rjs4470 said:

The risk to the player is the obvious part of the equation. What exactly is the reward for playing? Leading your team to a Texas Bowl (or whatever non playoff bowl you choose) isn't exactly life changing for the player or his teammates. Heck his backup who gets to play is probably the person most affected by the star sitting out and that's in a positive way. If I'm a teammate, I'm not going to mad if the star sits out to protect his chance at playing in the league, no matter how small the risk of career threatening injury might be. 

If money is all the player cares about ....

1 hour ago, TheDeuce said:

This all assumes someone is able to play in the NFL after an injury. In this case he could. 

It's not worth the risk to many, for obvious reasons. 

Has that ever happened?  In the past 25 years, is there a player who missed out on an NFL career because of an injury in a bowl game?

15 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

If money is all the player cares about ....

You have to look out for number one, no one else is going to. 

17 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

If money is all the player cares about ....

I understand your point. But we all care about money. An unfortunately we all need it to insure our present and our future. It's why we work so hard to save it, invest it and try to make sure we have as much of it as possible for our future. Winning the Holiday Bowl does nothing for me, or my teammates future. I can't pay for the  medical care I'll probably need as I get older with a Holiday Bowl  trophy. You can't tell me you haven't made decisions solely based on the financial impact it would have on you. 

42 minutes ago, Voice of Reason said:

Has that ever happened?  In the past 25 years, is there a player who missed out on an NFL career because of an injury in a bowl game?

I have no idea, and the answer is pretty irrelevant, IMO. The answer to that question doesn't change the risk factor. 

1 hour ago, TheDeuce said:

I have no idea, and the answer is pretty irrelevant, IMO. The answer to that question doesn't change the risk factor. 

Yes it does. What loss is the player risking? An entire career is a lot different than dropping one round in the draft.

1 hour ago, rjs4470 said:

I understand your point. But we all care about money. An unfortunately we all need it to insure our present and our future. It's why we work so hard to save it, invest it and try to make sure we have as much of it as possible for our future. Winning the Holiday Bowl does nothing for me, or my teammates future. I can't pay for the  medical care I'll probably need as I get older with a Holiday Bowl  trophy. You can't tell me you haven't made decisions solely based on the financial impact it would have on you. 

Similar to my answer in the post above, the risk is not $0 and no NFL career versus $50 million in the NFL. It is a much more narrow dollar difference.

So will players begin to sit out of meaningless regular season games(Akron/OSU as an example) or pad their stats?

 

Edit.

16 hours ago, Voice of Reason said:

Similar to my answer in the post above, the risk is not $0 and no NFL career versus $50 million in the NFL. It is a much more narrow dollar difference.

I will agree it’s not zero. At least for the elite stars. But while it’s not zero, a serious injury could cost a player potentially 10’s of millions, and potentially a season. And even if an injury isn’t career threatening, it could cost a player prep time for the combine, or even miss the combine, costing them draft spots and thus money. 
 

So while it isn’t an all or nothing proposition, it can still be significant, and we still haven’t made the case that the benefits outweigh what risk there is.

It makes no sense to skip look at all the players playing in Allstars games.

8 minutes ago, MaddenCurse44 said:

It makes no sense to skip look at all the players playing in Allstars games.

Different strokes for different folks. 

Reading some of the comments from Coach Smart and Georgia players... the "Orange Bowl" meant nothing to them. It is all about next Monday. Sad. As Coach Saban has said, we have created an atmosphere that has drastically diminished the importance of the bowls. Hard for me to be mad at the players. They are trying to navigate a situation created by the adults to make as much money as possible. 

 

Will never happen, but a return to an 11 game schedule and the old bowl system would be great for the players. And, the fewer games may actually benefit with better attendance and interest. 

 

The Hungry Dog Hunts best. 

5 minutes ago, ChiefSmoke said:

Reading some of the comments from Coach Smart and Georgia players... the "Orange Bowl" meant nothing to them. It is all about next Monday. Sad. As Coach Saban has said, we have created an atmosphere that has drastically diminished the importance of the bowls. Hard for me to be mad at the players. They are trying to navigate a situation created by the adults to make as much money as possible. 

 

Will never happen, but a return to an 11 game schedule and the old bowl system would be great for the players. And, the fewer games may actually benefit with better attendance and interest. 

 

The Hungry Dog Hunts best. 

I am for a return to an 11 game schedule with a 16 team playoff.  Given time the talent should spread out.  Add to that, you only have to stay one year.   Additionally, the players need a union and the money should be set.