Boomer Esiason Says There’s Chance NFL Pushes Week 18 Games Back a Week, Drops Bye Before Super Bowl

WFAN’s Boomer Esiason believes the NFL could move Week 18 games back a week and have no games this upcoming weekend to make up for the postponed game between the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals.

Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field after he made a tackle on Monday night. He received CPR on the field and was rushed to a local Cincinnati hospital, where he was intubated and listed in critical condition.

The game between the Bills and Bengals was postponed, and a date to continue the game had not been scheduled. Esiason, who played 14 years in the NFL, thinks there’s a chance the league may push week 18 games back, which would cause the conference championship games to take place a week before the Super Bowl, not two weeks ahead as it traditionally takes place.

“As far as the NFL’s concerned, everybody is focused on Damar; that’s the most important thing, that’s what I’ve been told,” Esiason said. “I do know that the weekend between the Super Bowl and the championship games, that is sitting there open, that’s a chance that everything will take that weekend into account, and maybe there will not be that week between the AFC Championship game… they may use that week as championship weekend.”

Update anchor Jerry Recco asked if the NFL would push the Wild Card Weekend games back a week, to which Esiason agreed, and then he thought the only way they could do that was by pushing all Week 18 games back a week as well.

“I would think the way that would work, if it did, would mean there would be no games this weekend,” Esiason continued. And then maybe Cincinnati and Buffalo will restart next Monday. That’s possible because there’s no Monday night game.”

The former NFL league MVP explained that all options are possible, and the NFL had many logistical scenarios they needed to go through before deciding how to restart the game.

“Everything’s on the table,” Esiason added.

“They’ll come up with some sort of solution that’s not going to please everybody, but ultimately the reality is, is that they gotta finish the season,” Esiason concluded.

Watch above via CBS Sports Network.