One of the most unfair things in this past playoffs other than that non call that cost the Saints a chance to advance to the Super Bowl was the overtime game involving the Patriots and the Chiefs. For some reason I thought the rules were different in the playoffs than in the regular season when it comes to overtime.
The current overtime rule as stated allow both teams the opportunity to possess the football, the rules end the game on an opening touchdown, but let the other team have a chance to match if there is an opening field goal.
That is exactly what happened in the AFC championship game when the Patriots won the coin toss took the ball and drove down and scored a TD thus ending the game and preventing the Chiefs from getting a shot to maybe tie or win the game.
So essentially the entire 2018/19 Kansas City season was decided by a coin toss. So why bother to play overtime? Why not just toss coins and let fate decide?
It never really hit me to how unfair that rule is until the HATED New England Patriots some how AGAIN benefited from something other than a natural conclusion to the game deciding the outcome.
That rule has changed over the years, it use to be that they had a time limit extra quarter that gave both teams as many opportunities to win the game just like in the first 4 quarters and if they ended in a tie you continue until someone eventually end the game on top. Baseball games can go 18 innings or more until a team comes up a winner.
Then they went to the system that said that whoever scores first no matter what a Safety, Field Goal any score would end the game. They changed that to what we witnessed last week where the Chiefs got derailed by a coin toss.
Just like with anything in life those who benefit from a rule see no problem with it thus the Chiefs fans are upset and the Patriots fans see no issues with the current rules and despite my hatred for New England my view on how it should be have nothing to do with my feelings for the Patriots.
So what should be the rules?
In the regular season I say it should be a similar “Sudden Death” game but with a little more fairness as both teams should be allowed to get a chance to touch the ball and let it conclude however it ends after both teams get the ball.
Example the first team (just like New England did) score a touchdown and kicks the extra point or maybe try for a 2 point conversion? For this example the Patriots scored the TD and kicked the extra point and now have a 7 point lead. The Chiefs now have a chance to try to tie the game by scoring a TD followed by and extra point kick but they also have the option to go for the two point conversion and end the game one way or another. The sudden death rule can apply if they should tie the game they at least where given a chance to respond to the Patriots win of a coin toss and getting a TD on the opening drive of overtime.
That SHOULD be the rule for overtime during the regular season…..
The Playoffs where teams have worked so hard to make it and fought so hard to end the regulation game in overtime deserves more opportunities especially considering all that’s at stake and the magnitude of the game and the INTEREST in the NFL playoffs and Superbowl.
So here is what the rules SHOULD be!
They had it right with the old way when teams were given an extra time limit like a half of a quarter (7 minute and 30 seconds) to settle things and only the points at the end of time should decide not a coin toss.
Just like in baseball like I mentioned earlier when they can take a game into multiple innings eventually the game will end and in the playoffs where so much more is on the line and we all are glued to the game I see no issues with allowing time decide the outcome however long it takes.
The Dolphin Seer 