Playoff format talk is futile without the power structure
Context
Richard agrees the sport talks too much about playoff format because the public version of the argument rarely controls the outcome. He can live with 12 and maybe 14, but the yearly 16/20/24/32/48 churn is exhausted.
The useful information is underneath: ESPN does not want a bigger-than-14 event, Fox does, and expansion beyond the contracted number likely sends the playoff back to the open market. The conferences also have to replace revenue if conference championship games disappear. Format talk is not meaningless, but it only matters when attached to the SEC/Big Ten/network/revenue mechanics.