Does the NFL Do Double Overtime?
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The NFL has a long history of overtime games, dating back to the famous 1958 NFL Championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants. In recent years, the league has been criticized for its lack of overtime games, with some fans arguing that the NFL should do double overtime.
What is the NFL overtime format?
In the NFL, overtime is played during the playoffs to determine who will advance to the next round. The overtime format is simple: each team gets one possession to score. If both teams score, or if neither team scores, the game ends in a tie.
The overtime format was introduced in 1974, and it was used in the playoffs for the first time in 1975. In 2017, the NFL expanded its use of overtime to regular season games. Under the new rules, if the game is tied at the end of regulation, each team gets one possession. If both teams score, or if neither team scores, the game ends in a tie.
How does the NFL overtime format work?
In the NFL, there is no such thing as double overtime. If the score is tied at the end of regulation, the game goes into overtime. The overtime format in the NFL is simple: each team gets one possession to score, and whichever team scores first wins the game. There are no second chances in overtime; it’s sudden death.
If neither team scores on their first possession, the game continues on a sudden-death basis. That means that if Team A scores a touchdown on their second possession, they win the game immediately, even if Team B has not yet had a chance to possess the ball. This can happen if Team B throws an interception on their first possession, or if they punt and Team A downs the ball inside their own 10-yard line. In either case, there is no need for Team B to have a second possession; the game is over as soon as Team A scores.
What are the benefits of the NFL overtime format?
The National Football League overtime format is designed to reduce the likelihood of a tie game. It gives both teams an equal chance to possess the ball and score, and it promotes excitement by giving both teams a chance to win in sudden death. In addition, it helps to prevent one team from running up the score and winning by a large margin.
What are the criticisms of the NFL overtime format?
In 2017, the NFL changed its overtime format for the regular season. In the past, if the game was tied after regulation, each team would get one possession in overtime, regardless of whether or not they had previously possession in OT. The new rule gives each team one possession as long as they don’t score a touchdown on their first drive. If both teams score touchdowns, or if both teams fail to score on their first drive, then the game goes into “sudden death” mode and the first team to score wins. This rule change was made in an effort to reduce the number of ties in NFL games.
The new overtime format has been criticized by some fans and analysts who feel that it favors the team that wins the coin toss. In the past, each team had an equal chance to win in OT, regardless of whether or not they won the coin toss. With the new format, if a team wins the coin toss and scores a touchdown on their first drive, the game is essentially over. The other team would then have to score a touchdown on their own drive and also stop the other team from scoring, which is a tall order.
Critics have also pointed out that the new OT format puts a greater emphasis on field goals, as teams are more likely to settle for a field goal if they don’t think they can score a touchdown on their first drive. This could lead to more boring games, as teams play it safe and avoid going for broke in OT.
Despite these criticisms, it’s worth noting that NFL games are still decided by touchdowns more often than not under the new format. In 2017, out of 34 NFL games that went into OT, only 8 were decided by field goals. So while there is some room for improvement, it’s not like the new OT format is drastically changing how games are played or decided.
