The Kansas City Chiefs have pushed on more than one occasion to change the current sudden death version of overtime in the NFL. Now, a new proposal has come out that would alter only the postseason version of overtime.
Nearly a third of overtime games in the last 16 seasons are determined on the first possession which is a major increase over the numbers in the previous 20 years.
According to the proposal applicable to only the postseason, a team could only win on the first possession of overtime if they score a touchdown. If they only score a field goal, then the other team would get a possession. If the other team fails to score in response to the field goal, the game would be over. If the other teams matches the field goal, then the game would turn into sudden death again.
Chiefs owner Clark Hunt supports the more fair overtime proposal, according to Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star.
"I’m intrigued by it," Hunt said. "It’s something that’s been discussed for a number of years, but this is the first time this particular proposal has come forward. I think it makes a lot of sense."
However, Mr. Hunt doesn't want to stop there. If it's acceptable for the postseason, he says, then it should be for the regular season as well.
"One of the questions I have on it is whether it should apply to both postseason and regular season," he said. "It does seem odd to me that you would have a different overtime rule in the postseason versus the regular season, though I understand the rationale why.
"My inclination right now is that we should do this for the regular season, too. I do want to hear the concerns from the coaches and general managers about wear and tear on the players and the possibility of impacting games the following weekend if you have overtime games that go longer."
That sounds like a yes to me on the overtime proposal.