Out of Bounds
Tom Wilder
Issue date: 11/20/08 Section: Sports
If applied in the NFL, the Arena League's overtime format would provide a tremendous boost in fairness while eliminating the sickening possibility of a sister-kissing tie. Guaranteeing at least one possession per team in overtime is imperative, since the current system has been known to decide games on a measly coin flip.
The AFL's innovative solution also permits teams to keep playing conservative, old-fashioned football - much better than college's circus-like resolution, which forces teams to go for two-point conversions starting with the third overtime period. Such outlandish rules make for exciting football, but the excitement isn't nearly worth the unfairness and impracticality carried with it.
I plead with you, Mr. Goodell: Change the overtime system in your league. Make it effective, exciting, and fair. But most of all, don't allow your dedicated fans to endure the stale taste of a tie after 75 minutes of football. This is the 35th season of the current overtime format. In that time, fans have sat through 17 miserable ties. Please, act now to prevent an 18th.
The AFL's innovative solution also permits teams to keep playing conservative, old-fashioned football - much better than college's circus-like resolution, which forces teams to go for two-point conversions starting with the third overtime period. Such outlandish rules make for exciting football, but the excitement isn't nearly worth the unfairness and impracticality carried with it.
I plead with you, Mr. Goodell: Change the overtime system in your league. Make it effective, exciting, and fair. But most of all, don't allow your dedicated fans to endure the stale taste of a tie after 75 minutes of football. This is the 35th season of the current overtime format. In that time, fans have sat through 17 miserable ties. Please, act now to prevent an 18th.
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