After initially determining champions through end-of-season standings, a playoff system was implemented in 1933 that culminated with the NFL Championship Game until 1966.

[14] A second meeting was held on September 17, 1920, with representatives from teams within four states: Akron, Canton, Cleveland, and Dayton from Ohio; the Hammond Pros and Muncie Flyers from Indiana; the Rochester Jeffersons from New York; and the Rock Island Independents, Decatur Staleys, and Racine (Chicago) Cardinals from Illinois.

[17] Although the league did not maintain official standings for its 1920 inaugural season and teams played schedules that included non-league opponents, the APFA awarded the Akron Pros the championship by virtue of their 8–0–3 record.

[18] The first event occurred on September 26, 1920, when the Rock Island Independents defeated the non-league St. Paul Ideals 48–0 at Douglas Park.

[33] The league's current commissioner, Roger Goodell, has focused on reducing the number of illegal hits and making the sport safer, mainly through fining or suspending players who break rules.

[39] In 2015, a class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of NFL Sunday Ticket subscribers, alleging that the NFL, its member teams, its broadcast partners, and DirecTV engaged in a conspiracy to violate antitrust law, by granting DirecTV exclusive rights to sell the Sunday Ticket product, thereby restricting competition and forcing viewers to pay super competitive prices to view out-of-market games.

[40][41] On June 27, 2024, a jury in Los Angeles found that the NFL had violated antitrust law in setting the price of the Sunday ticket package and ordered a penalty totaling more than $4.7 billion.

[43] In March 2021, the NFL officially adopted a 17-game schedule after gaining the agreement of the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA).

During the regular season, each team is allowed a maximum of 55 players on its roster; only 48 of these may be active (eligible to play) on game days.

[54] At the corporate level, the National Football League considers itself a trade association made up of and financed by its 32 member teams.

[66] Section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code provides an exemption from federal income taxation for "Business leagues, chambers of commerce, real-estate boards, boards of trade, or professional football leagues (whether or not administering a pension fund for football players), not organized for profit and no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.

"[67] In contrast, each individual team, with the exception of the non-profit Green Bay Packers,[68] is subject to tax because they make a profit.

[69] In 2015, the NFL gave up its tax-exempt status following public criticism; in a letter to the club owners, Commissioner Roger Goodell labeled it a "distraction", saying "the effects of the tax-exempt status of the league office have been mischaracterized repeatedly in recent years… Every dollar of income generated through television rights fees, licensing agreements, sponsorships, ticket sales, and other means is earned by the 32 clubs and is taxable there.

[71] The commissioner appoints the secretary and treasurer and has broad authority in disputes between clubs, players, coaches, and employees.

[72] In extreme cases, the commissioner can offer recommendations to the NFL's executive committee, up to and including the "cancellation or forfeiture"[72] of a club's franchise or any other action, he deems necessary.

[88] Although a team's home and away opponents are known by the end of the previous year's regular season, the exact dates and times for NFL games are not determined until much later because the league has to account for, among other things, the Major League Baseball postseason and local events that could pose a scheduling conflict with NFL games.

The Pro Bowl is not considered as competitive as a regular-season game because the biggest concern of teams is to avoid injuries to the players.

The league awarded it to the Akron Pros, champions of the inaugural 1920 season; however, the trophy was discontinued and its current whereabouts are unknown.

The current location of the Ed Thorp Memorial Trophy, long thought to be lost,[94] is believed to be possessed by the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame.

[97] Additionally, each player on the winning team as well as coaches and personnel are awarded Super Bowl rings to commemorate their victory.

[111] The only way to legally watch a regionally televised game not being carried on the local network affiliates is to purchase NFL Sunday Ticket, the league's out-of-market sports package, which is available through YouTube TV starting with the 2023 season.

[112] The league also provides NFL RedZone, an omnibus telecast that cuts to the most relevant plays in each game, live as they happen.

Amazon, through their Prime Video streaming service, is the exclusive carrier of the Thursday Night Football package.

[122] Beginning in 2024, Netflix holds the global streaming rights for at least one Christmas Day game every season as part of a three-year deal.

The NFL's most recent contract negotiation for the media rights deal was announced on March 18, 2021, to take effect beginning in the 2023 season.

Among them, the Skycam camera system was used for the first time in a live telecast, at a 1984 preseason NFL game in San Diego between the Chargers and 49ers, and televised by CBS.

[134] The NFL has licensing agreements with X, Reddit and Meta Platforms to serve as authorized social media outlets for the league and its teams.

The New England Patriots' attempt to launch a Bluesky account was met with a cease and desist order from the NFL headquarters.

[142] Selected players are only allowed to negotiate contracts with the team that picked them, but if they choose not to sign they become eligible for the next year's draft.

In the event of a 'disaster' (15 or more players killed or disabled) that results in a club's season being canceled, a restocking draft would be held.