Word: nfl
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...disappeared. The Jets won the coin toss and marched down the field to kick a field goal. Give New York credit for scoring, and sure New England could have gotten the ball back if its defense had "won" that particular part of the game. But why shouldn't the NFL give the Pats, and other teams like it, a chance to score too? Even a couple of NFL coaches this season have decided the the random nature of overtime can be too risky; twice so far, teams which scored a last second touchdown and could send the game into sudden...
...ridiculousness of the NFL's approach becomes clear when you think about the national pasttime. Imagine if at the end of a tied nine inning baseball game, the ump flipped a coin to determine who hits first. If that lucky team scores right away, it wins. It doesn't have to protect its lead by getting the final three outs, and the toss loser doesn't get its chance at "last licks...
...course there are a lot less injuries in baseball, and one of the primary reasons the NFL doesn't play a full 15 minute overtime is because longer games invariably increase the risk of already exhausted players getting hurt. But by not giving both teams an equal shot at winning, the league cheapens all the physical sacrifices its players make on the gridiron...
...NFL learn anything from the amateurs? While college football's overtime format may be more fair than pro's, it is absurd in a different way. In many respects, the setup feels like a game kids play at recess. Forgoing kickoffs altogether, each team receives the ball at the opponent's 25-yard line, meaning that without moving an inch, a team is already in field goal range. Teams alternate drives towards the end zone, until one team scores more than the other in an individual possession, or period (to try to move things along, the teams must...
...solve the overtime dilemma, the NFL should, like college, guarantee that teams receive equal possessions. But unlike college, they should continue to play, er, football. It can still be sudden death, provided that each team gets an equal shot at scoring. So for instance, if on that first possession, Jets quarterback Brett Favre had thrown an interception, and the Pats returned the ball for a touchdown, the game would be over since the Jets had had a series on offense. If the game is still tied at the end of the 15 minute period, then it would still...