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punters are football players - although they may not all look it physically. They are protected far too often, playing up to the officials when an opposing player gives them so much as a hard-stare. Contact should be allowed on a field-goal or punt so long as the defenders play the ball and not the player.

Timeouts have to be called from the field and not by coaches on the sideline - too many plays are being negated by over-zealous coaches (at times to their own detriment). The trend is to "ice the kicker", but some coaches are calling the sideline-timeout when the kick is in progress - we are now in a comedy of kicks - some games are decided by two different "game-winning" kicks.

Defensive players are given a raw deal - especially when it comes to pass-defending. The emphasis on calling illegal-contact and pass-interference has made any defender's attempt to break up a pass a heart-stopping event. There should be a fair level of defensive pressure put on a receiver's attempt to catch a pass but some contact should be seen as acceptable - the game is a contact sport after all.

Overtime is not essential and doesn't have to be the "holy grail" of deciding games in the NFL. The fact that winning is considered all- important it would be difficult for the league to drop this form of deciding tied games. It is ironic that virtually eliminating tied games makes for more complications when calculating playoff-eligible teams at the end of the season. Tied games would clear this up and are not quite the evil that the league will have everyone believe.

These are just a few measures that could be taken to smooth some of the rough-edges that have crept into the game in recent times. Lets get back to playing football the way it's meant to be played.

Learn more about this author, Wayne Reeves.
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