Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

[Chip Douglass]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

Yeah, that 8-8 team managed to beat both of those teams. They sure don't belong where they are.

LOL, yeah.

Not sure how anyone could complain about the Patriots not being in the playoffs over the Chargers when the Chargers thrashed them by 20. The game was fecking 30-3 at one point.

[55]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

The rules are fine just the way they are. Any change would be ridiculous.

[Bears_16_and_0]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

changing to college overtime is a huge mistake. I really wish people would stop bringing that up. Special Teams and defense are part of your team as well. What happens if the team that wins the toss throws a pick 6? They get the ball back and try to score again? What makes that any different than a team going down and scoring first?

Not to mention the inflated stats, the ridiculous length of a college game that goes 4OT etc..

Sudden Death is anti climatic? The game can end on any given play!

[spartansocc12]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

I think they should just play a full quarter, regular rules. After that they can go to sudden death (during the playoffs) or end in a tie (reg season).

I completely agree. Maybe even play an abbreviated quarter 10 minutes long. That would nearly ensure that both teams touch the ball unless one team really can kill the game off. It would make it feel like the last 10 min of a regular game all over again, which IMO is the best part of football. I don't know what the stat is but I'm positive that the team that wins the toss wins a higher percentage of games in OT which in itself proves that winning a coin toss at the very least gives one team a competitive advantage. That is tough to argue and in any sport I do not think that is a fair way of deciding a close contest after so much both teams had to endure in regular time.

[Rocky]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

Eh, CFB overtimes take players like Devin Hester, Steve Tasker, and Dante Hall off the field so they can do an 11 on 11 scrimmage. What could be more exciting than sudden death?

According to stats, 28% of the time the current OT rule takes Randy Moss, Peyton Manning, Ed Reed, Tom Brady, Derrick Brooks, Steve Smith, etc. off the field.

And sudden death, isn't often sudden death. It's often, run left, run right, run middle, then kick a 37 yard FG death.

[spartansocc12]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

<table width="417" border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"><tbody><tr><td width="286">Total no. of overtime games (1974–2003)</td> <td width="124">

365

</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Both teams had at least one possession</td> <td>

261 (72 %)

</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Team won toss and won game</td> <td>

189 (52 %)

</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Team lost toss and won game</td> <td>

160 (44 %)

</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Team won toss and drove for winning score</td> <td>

102 (28 %)

</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Games ending in a tie</td> <td>

15 (5 %)

</td></tr></tbody></table>
So 52% of the time the team that won the toss won the game, and only 28% of the time they won the toss and won on that drive. Seems like fine statistics to me.

Like Extremegamer said above, you don't play four quarters then change the game. You don't play 9 innings in baseball then have a homerun derby. You don't run 500 laps in Nascar then do a quarter mile drag (although Nascar doesn't have OT... anyway), you don't play 4 quarters of NBA then have a dunk contest to see who wins.

The college formula specifically ignores special teams returns, something which I think is a significant part of the game.

But you are changing the rules in the NFL overtime. A regular game has a time limit where the team who scores most in that amount of time wins the game. Why change that rule in OT? I don't think it is arguable that they are changing the rules. All your examples are great but they are extremes. A small or large rule change is still a rule change.

[MaddenMan]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

How did you come up with 5%? Why is anything over 5% not fair?

I was being sarcastic, my point is that if you don't even get the friggin ball to score, it's unfair. It's basically 28% of the time decided on a coin toss. You can't tell me defense blah blah blah when the game goes into OT and it's like a 41-41 game (basically every time the offense touches the ball they score in some way or another) that it is fair, it's an offensive game and penalizing a team by not letting them have the ball since they lost a random toss just doesn't seem like the right way to have a game decided, especially a playoff game.

At any rate I still think the Chargers would have won even if it was the college format, but still who knows?

[Jukeman]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

In any other sport both teams get a chance to score....baseball, hockey, basketball

[judgejudy]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

what if, instead of a coin toss. whoever was in possession of the ball when the game ended, receives the kickoff. keep the rest of the rules as they are.

[ILLCHILL]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

Give home-field advantage a real boost. Each team plays one offensive possession, if neither team is winning after each and it is a tie, give the home team the win. No problem.

[J0nnD0ugh]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

The college OT isn't satisfactory. I prefer the current NFL rule, but that's not to say it can't be improved. Here's what I'd rather do:

Each team is guaranteed 1 posession. San Diego wins the toss. They score a TD on the opening posession. They have the option of going for one or 2. Now Indy must score a TD & go for 2 only, even if SD just chose to kick. If SD chose to kick & missed or didn't convert the 2pt, then the Colts can choose to kick the PAT. If both teams miss their PAT's or conversions, game becomes sudden death, first to score wins.

If SD gets a FG, Indy still must score a TD on their next posession. If SD doesn't score & punts, then the game becomes sudden death, ending w/the 1st score.

Was that clear or confusing?

[P2K]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

Isn't the OP a big time Colts fan?

Yeeeaaahhh, this thread reeks of sour grapes.

[Exonerated]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

Overtime needs to be changed. Peyton Manning should get the ball first.

[PSU_DW2]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

Pro overtimes are better than college overtimes because there is a kickoff and special teams like punting are involved.

I think pro overtime is fine, only i wish they would play the first two overtime quarters (even if they are 10 minute quarters instead of 15 minute quarters) non-sudden death. Just play two overtime quarters out for playoff games and then after that for a 3rd quarter go sudden death.

But I think for regulation NFL games the current overtime format is fine. Teams should play no more than 1 overtime period in regular season games.

[PSU_DW2]

Re: Overtime Needs To Be Changed....

The college OT isn't satisfactory. I prefer the current NFL rule, but that's not to say it can't be improved. Here's what I'd rather do:

Each team is guaranteed 1 posession. San Diego wins the toss. They score a TD on the opening posession. They have the option of going for one or 2. Now Indy must score a TD & go for 2 only, even if SD just chose to kick. If SD chose to kick & missed or didn't convert the 2pt, then the Colts can choose to kick the PAT. If both teams miss their PAT's or conversions, game becomes sudden death, first to score wins.

If SD gets a FG, Indy still must score a TD on their next posession. If SD doesn't score & punts, then the game becomes sudden death, ending w/the 1st score.

Was that clear or confusing?

Very simple. First team to 5 points.