by Mike Gibson

Created on: June 18, 2009

The NFL overtime system is not perfect but there is one good thing about it - the games end QUICKLY and have a winner. There have only been a couple of games that ended in ties in the last decade or so in the NFL. It's also nice that the games don not need to go to second and third and fourth overtime like they do in other sports and college football.

The problem with the overtime isn't the system - but many think the coin toss. Many people believe that if you win the coin toss - you pretty much win the overtime. This isn't true.. but lets assume it is for argument's sake.

The real problem with overtime is needing the overtime in the first place. I have a near-perfect solution that wouldn't involve any changes to the game or the overtime but would make tie games less frequent and create some more excitement and strategy at the end of games.

The rule change: the last team to score in a game automatically kicks off in overtime. How many games have you watched late in the fourth quarter where a team down by 3 points blatantly tries to just get in position for a field goal to tie? How much more exciting would it be if the coach had to at least think about trying for the touchdown? If the coach knows that if he kicks the field goal to tie it - then he has to kick the ball and make a defensive stand in overtime - he might throw a pass or two and try to get in the end zone and avoid the whole thing!

I would bet that this rule change would reduce the number of overtime games per year by either A) the last team with the ball scoring a touchdown and winning or B) the last team with a ball taking a sack or throwing an interception and losing. Another bonus is that some teams down by 7 and scoring a touchdown might elect to go for the 2 point conversion and win the game in regulation instead of taking the chance of kicking off in overtime - similar to what Mike Shanahan did with the Denver Broncos early in the 2008 season against the San Diego Chargers for a victory - and he would have had a coin toss! It would also add even more strategy to the end of the game in addition to just worrying about running clock and using timeouts and trying to get your kicker to the middle of the field.

Forget trying to change overtime and making the games longer. Forget trying to adapt college football's goofy overtime which isn't really football anyway and making the overtime quarter even longer. Let's try to make the end of regular games more exciting and in the process cut back on overtime games!

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