The overwhelming success of the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off tournament has sparked interest in how other American sports leagues might replicate that success. On a recent edition of the Rich Eisen Show, a caller named Modee from Detroit proposed an interesting idea for the NFL.
Modee suggested that the NFL could introduce a game featuring players divided into teams based on their collegiate conferences to replace the traditional Pro Bowl format. “Hey Rich, hey everyone,” Modee said, “I was listening to one of your YouTube videos yesterday where you asked what would be the 4 Nations Face-Off version in the NFL. I was thinking maybe we could have four teams. One representing the Big Ten, one representing the SEC players in the NFL, one representing the Big 12. That’s the closest thing to healthy tribalism in the NFL, akin to college football, which is quite territorial. Each team could play one quarter of 15 or 20 minutes of tackle football instead of the Pro Bowl.”
What would an #NFL version of the #4Nations tournament look like?
Big Ten vs. SEC? Florida vs. Texas? pic.twitter.com/zJjZAKpm1Y
— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) February 21, 2025
On paper, this idea is intriguing, especially with the ongoing debate about whether the Big Ten has surpassed the SEC as the premier college football conference following Ohio State’s recent National Championship win. Similar to the NBA’s All-Star Weekend, the NFL’s Pro Bowl Games format has been in need of a revamp for quite some time, having hit a record-low viewership average of 4.7 million viewers in 2025. A format that embraces the popularity of college football could help reverse the drastic decline in viewership in recent years.
Although Rich Eisen appreciated Modee’s concept, he expressed skepticism about the NFL reverting to a traditional full-contact Pro Bowl game, particularly given the increase in regular-season games. “I hear you, Modee,” Eisen replied. “That’s not a bad idea. Other than the fact that you’re never gonna see NFL players lay it on the line with serious hits after the season is over. Those days are absolutely over.” He reminisced about past Pro Bowls played on remarkably hard turf, likening it to a parking lot and noting how absurd the conditions were.
Eisen pointed out that a significant difference between the NHL and NFL is the timing of their respective All-Star games; the Pro Bowl occurs at the season’s end, influencing player enthusiasm about embracing such a change. Considering the injuries and physical toll NFL players endure during the regular and postseason, it’s unlikely they would fully commit to this concept. However, if realized in some form, it could still pique the interest of both NFL and college football fans.
