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Awesome, the NFL is messing with the overtime rules again and from the looks of things they still can’t figure out how to do it right.
Let’s go back in time for a little bit here. Remember how stupid the NFL’s overtime rule used to be where if a team won the kickoff and went straight down and scored any points at all it was game over? Yeah, that was a very bad rule.
Then the NFL changed it so that if a team won the coin toss and went down and just kicked a field goal the other team still had a chance. However, if they scored a TD then the new rules really made no freaking difference. It was still game over. So the rules are still kind of stupid, right?
So what did the NFL owners do this week to try to make overtime make a little more sense?
They decided to shorten it from 15 minutes to 10 minutes.
That’s it.
Wow.
Reports NFL.com…
As NFL Network’s Judy Battista pointed out, the rule change is aimed at improving player safety. There have been concerns about the number of additional plays teams undergo while playing a full 15-minute overtime period, especially when one of the teams is subject to playing its next game on a short week.
Some teams were initially concerned the condensed time period would limit their ability to control the ball during the extra frame, but it appears those worries have eased, at least for now.
“We think this is an important change, particularly for teams that may be into an overtime situation and a lengthy overtime situation that may have to come back and play on a Thursday night, so this is another positive change,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday.
Another reason for shortening OT is apparently because they think that with less time teams will be more aggressive on offense.
Then again, if a team can just grind out a long drive, for say 8 or 9 minutes (not unthinkable), they would leave the other team with almost no time left on the clock.
Can’t wait to see the NFL’s response the first time that happens.
In other rule change news, the No Fun League is finally going to give players a break on celebrating.
In a letter to fans from Commissioner Roger Goodell, the NFL said it wants to allow players “more room to have fun after they make big plays.”
Goodell spoke with more than 80 current and former NFL players about relaxing the rules on celebrations.
“We know that you love the spontaneous displays of emotion that come after a spectacular touchdown,” the Commissioner said in the letter. “And players have told us they want more freedom to be able to express themselves and celebrate their athletic achievements.”
However, there has been no official word yet on how many pumps Antonio Brown will be able to do while twerking under the new rule. Stay tuned.
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