When the innovative Orleans Saints won the coin toss in the commence of overtime in the NFC Championship Game, the fanatics in the Superdome cheered so loudly you'd feel they'd just won the game.
Minutes later, they had won the game. And we had all looked at once once again just how essential successful the coin toss is within NFL overtime.
If you abide by basketball at all, you recognize that there may be a fierce debate among fanatics about which program of overtime features better: The NFL release (which begins getting a kickoff out of your 30-yard path and ends when one group scores) or even the college release (which alternates possessions out of your 25-yard path and ends pursuing one group has the lead pursuing a pair of possessions). the reality is, neither the NFL program neither the college program may be very good.
To repair overtime, the NFL does not need to imitate college football. It just prefers to tweak its longstanding sudden dying structure by making use of the community selling program to be able the fact that kickoff does not take location out of your 30. very of telling the going to group to phone call heads or tails, the referee should inform the going to group to select a lawn path on which the kickoff will take place. that is the going to team's "bid." after which it your house group can both choose to kick or receive.
Receiving the kickoff is a only a huge benefit considering the kickoff requires location out of your 30-yard line, which typically sets up the receiving team's offense in impressive area position, because it do to the Saints on Sunday. when the kickoff took location twenty yards away, on the 50-yard line, it may properly not be an benefit at all. And if it took location 40 yards away, all the way on the 30-yard line, it will be considered a huge benefit to kick far from in the commence of overtime.
So what is the precise lawn path through which it becomes beneficial to kick, very of to receive? It really does not matter. that is the attractiveness out of your community selling principle: The going to group can establish for by yourself what the fairest lawn path to commence is, after which it your house group can establish for by yourself whether it prefers to kick or receive. Neither group has any space to complain.
I first proposed this idea in 2003, as well as the concept have been discussed in other places, these kinds of as this impressive item at Slate. Unfortunately, the NFL has offered no considerable thought on the idea. that is a shame. there may be an uncomplicated choice on the NFL's overtime problem, also it is time to the league to adopt it.
