The NFL Competition Committee announced a series of proposed rule changes for upcoming seasons, including four requested by the New England Patriots and three by the Washington Redskins. Of the 13 known proposed rule changes, six more were proposed by the Competition Committee itself.
NFL discusses rule changes, including longer PATs and reviews on all plays
The league is looking a number of possible changes to future NFL seasons, but one thing that’s apparently not on the agenda at this time is an expanded playoff system.
The most drastic changes would include moving kickoffs to the 40-yard line (proposed by the Redskins), which would effectively eliminate kickoff returns entirely. The yard line for kickoffs was moved up to the 35-yard line in 2011, which made many people fear at the time that the play would become unimportant soon enough, but another five yards may turn every kickoff into a touchback for certain.
This is usually seen as a safety issue, as kickoff coverage and returns has resulted in many high-impact injuries in the past.
Another big change involving kickers would be moving the PAT line-of-scrimmage back to the 25-yard line (proposed by the Patriots), which wouldn’t make the extra point as automatic as it has been in recent years. Kickers have converted 99.1 percent of extra point attempts over the last five seasons.
New England also proposed that all referee decisions, essentially every play, would be reviewable. The Redskins proposed that personal foul penalties should also be up for in-game reviews. There is also a bylaw proposal for rosters that would include allowing teams to have more than one player who can return from injured reserve last season, plus adding two players to the practice squad.
A notable missing proposal in this announcement was anything in regards to an expanded playoff system. If such a change is coming in the future, it does not appear that it will take effect or be up for review this year.
See More:
