Are NFL Goal Posts Narrower Than They Used to Be?
Contents
We take a look at whether NFL goal posts have gotten narrower over the years, and what might be behind the change.
Introduction
In American football, the goal posts sit at the back of the end zone, and they are used to score field goals and extra points. In order to score a field goal, the ball must be placed between the uprights and over the crossbar. The width of the uprights has been increased on several occasions over the years, but it was recentlyDecreased in 2015. The current width of an NFL goal post is 23 feet 4 inches (7.1 meters).
Background
The National Football League (NFL) is the highest level of professional American football. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing its name to National Football League in 1922. The NFL is made up of thirty-two teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference and the American Football Conference.
The Rule Change
In 2015, the NFL moved the point of placement for extra point kicks from the 2-yard line back to the 15-yard line. This made it a 33-yard kick, instead of a 20-yard kick. In turn, this should have made it more difficult for teams to score, as there is now a greater distance between the uprights. The rule change did have an effect on how teams score during extra point attempts. In 2014, before the rule change was implemented, 99.6 percent of all extra point attempts were successful. In 2015, that number fell to 94.2 percent. However, it is still early to tell if this rule change will have a lasting effect on how teams score overall, or if it was just a temporary dip.
Why the Change?
The NFL’s goal posts were originally 18 feet, 6 inches wide in 1932. That width remained the same for almost 50 years, until it was narrowed by a foot on each side in 1974. The league claimed the change was made for safety reasons, as there had been several instances of players running into the goal posts while trying to make a catch.
In 2014, the NFL again tweaked the rules regarding goal post width, this time moving them back to their original dimensions of 18 feet, 6 inches. The league said the change was due to “competitive balance,” as some teams were finding it easier to kick field goals with the narrower posts.
It’s worth noting that college football and high school football have also changed their goal post widths over the years. College football adopted the narrower posts in 1997, but switched back to the wider dimensions in 2008. High school football goal posts are also 18 feet, 6 inches wide.
How Much Narrower Are They?
The goal posts in the NFL are, in fact, narrower than they used to be. The league narrowed them in 2015 from 18 feet 6 inches wide to 14 feet wide. That may not seem like a big difference, but it makes a big difference for the kickers.
What Does This Mean for NFL Games?
The goal posts in the NFL have been moved back to the end zone, making them narrower than they used to be. This change will make it harder for teams to score field goals, and the extra point after a touchdown will now be more difficult to convert.
This change will likely have a significant impact on how NFL games are played. Teams will now have to think carefully about whether to attempt a field goal or go for it on fourth down. The extra point may also become less common, as teams opt for the two-point conversion instead.
This change could make for some more exciting games, as there will be more suspense about whether teams will be able to score. It will also make kicking clinicians more valuable, as their ability to make long field goals could be the difference between winning and losing.
Conclusion
After doing some research, we have come to the conclusion that NFL goal posts are narrower than they used to be.
The Width of an NFL Goal Post
The official width of an NFL goal post is 23 feet, 3 3/8 inches. The uprights are 10 feet tall, and the crossbar is 10 feet long. In the past, the width of an NFL goal post was 24 feet, 6 inches. The width was narrowed in 1973 to make it easier for officials to determine if a field goal was good or not.
The narrowing of the goal posts has had a significant impact on the game of football. In the past, kickers would routinely make field goals that were over 50 yards. Now, most kickers struggle to make field goals that are over 40 yards.
The narrowing of the goal posts has also made it more difficult for teams to execute onside kicks. In the past, onside kicks were relatively easy to execute because the kicking team just had to kick the ball between the uprights. Now, onside kicks are much more difficult because the kicking team has to kick the ball between the uprights and above the crossbar.
Overall, we believe that the narrowing of NFL goal posts has had a negative impact on the game of football.
