Dozen Trivia Season 7 Proposed Changes?

Now that we are over 72 hours removed from a dominant Experts repeat, the news cycle has begun to flow about possible new rules, changes, or even teams for Season 7. While nothing was wrong with Season 6, the desire for something new is felt by players, fans, and even host Jeff D. Lowe himself. So, here are my 5 proposed changes for 2027, some can be packaged together, while others would mean a total overhaul.

1. Player Deactivation Lifeline

The Dozen has teams full of assassins: Fran, who hasn’t missed a celebrity mashup in four years; Mark Titus in college basketball; or Frank the Tank in MLB. So, what if you could take them out for a specific question? (Of course, you still wouldn't be able to do this during a niche round.) This could change the game completely, forcing teams to think strategically. For instance, do you take out Titus for CBB or KB for Geography? Jake Malasek for mashup or Coach Gruden for NFL? The one downfall: we might miss out on players flexing their knowledge at their absolute best.

2. Bring Back the Old Bonus Round Completely

While the closest-guess format can be fun to watch for live shows as teams fight for the marker back and forth, the classic lists feel like they play better throughout the regular season. Personally, it also feels more suspenseful and "trivia-like." We could even compromise by doing closest guess once a week and the list twice. It gets everyone involved and allows for a true team effort. Plus, everyone loves a speed round!

3. Double Block Lifeline

This runs along the lines of the player-deactivation lifeline above, but instead, a team can block an opponent's Double. The targeted team would still keep their Double, but they'd be forced to use it on a different category. This might be a more popular choice since no individual players miss out on showing their skills, but it still creates a ton of strategy and could even the playing field a bit. You only get one block, though... so are you blocking Dana Beers’ ponies, a CBB double, or an NBA double?

4. Pre-Season Individual Tournament Championship

This was done one summer a few years ago, but players were mostly only quizzed on their niches or top categories. This version would feature the standard 12 to 15 categories we see in regular Dozen matches, complete with your usual lifelines. Now, before you say, "Well, get ready for Tommy Smokes vs. Brandon Walker or Kelly Keegs vs. Minihane," think about how they'd fare across all categories. This could be a great way to create buzz and small rivalry storylines for the upcoming season. Also, how tough would a Jake Malasek vs. Dana Beers championship match go?!

5. The BIG ONE… INSANE ONE EVEN: A Full League Expansion Draft

All team captains can only protect one player. Oh yeah, this would be highly controversial, but when does controversy not turn into great content? The draft order would put any new expansion teams at the top, followed by the existing teams picking in reverse order of how they finished the previous season. Who isn't tuning in to hear Jeff D. Lowe announce who got dropped into the player pool? Or have Jersey Jerry or even myself with Mel Kiper & Todd McShay big boards! It'd be fascinating to see who grabs whom, would some teams try to draft their old teammates back, or would they just go for the absolute best All-Stars at the top of the board?

Of course, I know that last one is earth-shattering and EXTREMELY UNLIKELY. I also don't think the league actually needs that type of drastic change. It’s just the nature of the beast; when a dynasty looks to be forming, fans immediately start thinking of ways to stop it.

The Commish himself, Jeff D. Lowe, already teased some changes for 2027, so why not throw a few ideas out into the world to see if anything sticks? In reality, just like when the Super Bowl ends, we are all just experiencing the shock of not being able to watch one of our favorite leagues for the next few months. So Jeff, if you see this, I’m not dogging the league, just giving the committee a few ideas to ponder.