NFL loosens restrictions on position numbers and gives date for schedule release

The NFL chose Wednesday to update a rule that will change the way the league looks and an important date to watch out for.

The first thing is the NFL will bee loosening the restrictions on the jersey numbers certain positions can wear. This is a rule that may have puzzled many fans for years as college football has been very lax about this rule for a very long time.

Here is what the restrictions look like now:

• QB: 1-19
• RB/WR/TE: 1-49, 80-89
• OL: 50-79
• DL: 50-79, 90-99
• LB: 1-59, 90-99
• CB/S: 1-49
• K/P: 1-19

The biggest change is opening up most positions to being able to wear single digits. This is an update that Cincinnati Bengals safety Jessie Bates seems ready to jump on.

There will undoubtedly be other players who hop on this trend as well. It may be more likely that we see rookies coming in be more prone to take these numbers than veterans switching to them, but the NFL will be looking very different in 2021.

The other big update was throwing out a date to watch for the schedule reveal. Wednesday May 12th is the day to watch. It will be the first 272-game season after the league added a 17th game for each team. It will be interesting to see when the Bengals will be playing their 2021 opponents. It will also be interesting to see how the NFL finalizes all of this.

What is your prediction for the Bengals 2021 schedule?