They Broke The NFL

[Clay Dreslough]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shu...urn=nfl,229797

God dammit. I used to like the NFL. What the heck are they thinking?!?

The overtime fix has been right under their nose for years:

http://www.sportsmogul.com/content/overtime.html

This is sad. Any sport that changes the rules in overtime is totally broken. That's why Americans hate soccer, and why almost no one watches hockey anymore...

[/rant]

Clay

[ragecage]

I honestly think it's a good rule change. It has been proven whoever wins the toss is more likely to win the game. This at least gives the other team a chance if the defense holds 'em to a lame field goal.

[daves]

It's a weird rule. If you have a great defense you might get better field position and a better chance to win to kick off rather than receive.

There is a somewhat of a plus to this, but a very weak one at that.

[StreetMedic]

A caller offered the solution in that article (coin-toss goes to home team) on (I think) WEEI, today, and the talk-masters were all over him.

The main argument against was the assertion that there was already too much "advantange" in "home-field advantage", without making it still more unbalanced.

Anyway, FWIW, I'll go with (again, I think) Roger Goodell's pitch to the owners, before the vote, when he said, "Don't let 'perfect' get in the way of 'better'." I think this change, while not "perfect", is a step in the right direction.

I agree with Ragey ("lame field goal") that the sudden-death OT coin-toss seems to shrink a 100-yard field into about a 50-yard field for whomever wins the flip.

What I find interesting, locally, is that Bill Belichick reportedly didn't like the proposed rule change, but Bob Kraft voted for it, anyway.

[etothep]

I like the 'First team to 4 points wins' overtime idea

[dickay]

I honestly think it's a good rule change. It has been proven whoever wins the toss is more likely to win the game. This at least gives the other team a chance if the defense holds 'em to a lame field goal.

its also been proven that the winner in overtime games wins on the first possession only 37% of the time (or thereabout).

i think the change is unneccessary, but i do like it. nothing is worse that seeing an overtime drive get to the 25-30 and either kick right away on 1st or 2nd down, or basically run three up the middle runs which are like kneel downs and then kick the ball. At least this change will push them to go for it on those earlier downs as a FG doesn't mean a win whereas a touchdown does.

i hardly think this is really that big a deal.

[ragecage]

its also been proven that the winner in overtime games wins on the first possession only 37% of the time (or thereabout).

i think the change is unneccessary, but i do like it. nothing is worse that seeing an overtime drive get to the 25-30 and either kick right away on 1st or 2nd down, or basically run three up the middle runs which are like kneel downs and then kick the ball. At least this change will push them to go for it on those earlier downs as a FG doesn't mean a win whereas a touchdown does.

i hardly think this is really that big a deal.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=090...s&confirm=true

Overall, the team that correctly called the coin toss won overtime games 59.8 percent of the time in the last 15 years, or since kickoffs were moved back 5 yards to the 30.

Thats pretty good odds. It's pretty clear whoever wins the toss has an advantage right away.

[OregonDuck1989]

Hockey's overtime has actually increased viewership of overtime games I believe. A lot of times people would just turn off overtime in regular season games. The teams played like they didn't want the extra point.


NFL just needs to do this: 1 10 minute period. If no one scores, 5 minute periods until someone does.


NBA style niggass

[200tang]

Uh, you realize that soccer fans LIKE the overtime rules, right? It's the penalty kicks they hate, just like hockey fans. Learn your facts bro!

[OregonDuck1989]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=090...s&confirm=true



Thats pretty good odds. It's pretty clear whoever wins the toss has an advantage right away.

Also, how many times does the team who didn't win the toss score on the first possession? It's probably closer to zero (or thereabouts)


I'm down with 10 minutos. Play the game. Not some shortened pussy ass version of it. This isn't hockey. We don't need sudden death in football.

[etothep]

NBA style niggass

[dickay]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=090...s&confirm=true



Thats pretty good odds. It's pretty clear whoever wins the toss has an advantage right away.

i hear ya rage, but the same article quotes this;

Those statistics showed that since 1994, the team that won the overtime coin toss won the game 34.4 percent of the time on the first possession.

So in 65.6% of the games both teams already had a possession, and a chance to win already. Though I suppose the kickoff return gives them better field position and a better chance than the punt return if the defense stops them first.

Thinking about it, keep it "sudden death" but no punts or kickoffs. Team A starts at their 30. If team A fails on their first possession, barring a turnover, team B takes over on the opposite 30 yard line. Both teams then have the same chance, which according to prior history is about 34.4% Go until someone scores.

[gRYFYN1]

Thinking about it, keep it "sudden death" but no punts or kickoffs. Team A starts at their 30. If team A fails on their first possession, barring a turnover, team B takes over on the opposite 30 yard line. Both teams then have the same chance, which according to prior history is about 34.4% Go until someone scores.

See i don't like that either - I think its just odd to change the rules of a game for the OT.

Keep in mind, this is only in the playoffs, Where only 3 games have ended on the first possession in OT.

If they are truly worries about the possible effect in OT, just remove sudden death from OT.

[dickay]

See i don't like that either - I think its just odd to change the rules of a game for the OT.

Keep in mind, this is only in the playoffs, Where only 3 games have ended on the first possession in OT.

If they are truly worries about the possible effect in OT, just remove sudden death from OT.

Good points. We all know that tv deals and money are the sole reason they are hesitant to make changes that will lengthen the game.

[dps]

Personally, I've always felt that using overtime in the regular season is stupid, anyway. Let regular season games end in a tie.

In the postseason, of course, you've got to have a winner