NFL overtime rules came into question big time following the Kansas City Chiefs’ dramatic win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Divisional Playoffs this past weekend.
Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen traded touchdowns in an impressive fashion with the two teams combining for 25 points in the final two minutes of regulation.
Allen even touched on it after Mahomes threw a touchdown to Travis Kelce to win the game on the first possession of overtime.
“The rules are what they are. I can’t complain about that because if it was the other way around, we’d be celebrating too,” Allen said after the game. “It is what it is at this point. We just didn’t make enough plays tonight.”
Current NFL rules dicate that a team can win on the first possession of overtime via either a touchdown or a safety. Otherwise, the other team gets an opportunity to touch the ball by matching with a field goal. After that, it’s sudden death. The NFL might now be considering this change through the league’s competition committee during the offseason.
“The NFL and its rulemaking competition committee expect to consider changes to the overtime format this offseason, particularly as it relates to postseason games,” Mark Maske of The Washington Post reported Wednesday. “But it is far from certain that any modifications will be enacted, according to multiple people familiar with the situation.”
According to Maske, it seems unlikely that regular-season overtime rules will change. Rather, the focus could be on postseason games.
Related: NFL Playoff and Super Bowl predictions
NFL overtime rules under scrutiny
As we reported following the Chiefs’ big win, the numbers are eye-opening when it comes to who wins the toss heading into overtime of playoff games.
- Including the postseason, there have been 163 overtime games under the current NFL overtime rules. Teams that won the coin coss have a record of 86-67-10 (52.8%).
- There have been 11 overtime playoff game under the new rules. Teams that won the coin toss have a record of 10-1 with the only loss being the New Orleans Saints against the Los Angeles Rams in the 2018 NFC Championship Game.
A 10-1 record since NFL adopted its current rules back in 2010 tells us pretty much all we need to know about competitive balance.
With that said, there’s no reason to believe that the NFL will adopt college football overtime rules. College games can draw on to six or seven overtimes with teams starting at their opponent’s 25-yard line. This would lead to some generic stat stuffing on the part of quarterbacks, creating major issues as it relates to NFL single-season and single-game records.