NFL sees momentum for changing overtime rules, but no consensus on how to do it

[profootballtalk.nbcsports.com] NFL sees momentum for changing overtime rules, but no consensus on how to do it
Posted by Michael David Smith on March 25, 2022, 11:09 AM EDT

Seattle Seahawks v San Francisco 49ers
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To change rules in the NFL requires the votes of at least 24 of the 32 teams. And that’s not a level of consensus that’s easy to achieve — even when everyone agrees that a rule is flawed.

And so the NFL’s overtime rules may stay the same this season, not because everyone thinks they’re just fine, but because no one can agree on the best way to improve them.


Rich McKay, the head of the NFL’s Competition Committee, said today that he thinks the league is generally in agreement that overtime could be improved, but that doesn’t mean that either of the two overtime rule proposals that were put forward this offseason will be adopted.

“I think there’s a lot of momentum to have a change,” McKay said. “24 votes is not easy to get.”

If a change is made, the most likely change is a rule giving both teams the opportunity to possess the ball in overtime. It’s possible that rule could be adopted for the postseason, but the current rule would stay in place for the regular season. It’s also possible that nothing will change, because 24 votes are hard to get.