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The NFL is about to embark on its first postseason with new overtime rules, and coaches who win the toss may consider whether to take the unusual step of kicking off their opponents in overtime.
The league changed its overtime rules this past offseason, largely due to the end of the Bills Chiefs Division Round game. After winning a coin toss in overtime and scoring first, the Chiefs won 42–36.
Only in the playoffs do both teams need the opportunity to keep possession of the ball. Gone are the days of winning the toss and scoring a touchdown to end the game.
And that should change the coach’s approach to strategy. Offensive in overtime With his possession guaranteed, the coach must suspend the captain if the captain wins his toss in overtime.
Kicking off to their opponent gives the team that wins the toss a chance to know exactly what they need to do to win or extend the game. It would also give the team a chance to finish the game on a defensive score, and a defensive stop and subsequent punt on the kickoff could very well improve the team’s starting field his position. will be higher.
Winning a toss and picking a kick is pretty much what happens in college football. But even then, it’s guaranteed to start offensive possessions at the 25-yard line. By winning or kicking in overtime in the NFL, the team that wins the toss has a very good chance of gaining an advantage over their opponent in an improved starting position on the field.
Since 2010, there have been 12 overtime playoff games. The team that won the coin toss, he was 10-2 in those games, but of his 12 teams that won the coin toss, he won the first possession without any other team holding the ball. was only 7 teams.
The league used these numbers (10 wins, 2 losses and 7 wins in 12 games) to justify a change in overtime rules. In fact, it was the breathtaking Bills Chiefs game that forced the change.
The Chiefs won an overtime coin toss in the AFC title game against the Bengals, but still lost the game. In the controversial NFC Championship Game between the Saints and Rams that followed the 2018 regular season, the Saints won a coin toss in overtime and still lost the game.
In 12 overtime games since 2010, a team has never won an overtime coin toss and opted to kick an opponent. Since 2017, only one team has taken that route in the regular season, according to TruMedia.
In 2019, Mike Tomlin made this choice for the Steelers against the Ravens in Week 5. Mason Rudolph started the season early with an injury to Ben Roethlisberger, but suffered a concussion midway through the third quarter and was replaced by Devlin Hodges. The Steelers had only six points left in regulation.
With high winds and a struggling offense in Pittsburgh, Tomlin decided to kick the Ravens to play with the wind after winning the OT coin toss. That meant that his stop defensively would likely give the ball back to the Steelers, giving him a better field position and the wind on his back. Ultimately, the Steelers fumbled near midfield after scoring a stop, and the Ravens scored the game-winning 46-yard field goal to win.
The new playoff overtime rule includes a 15-minute period instead of the regular season’s 10-minute overtime period. If the team that got the ball first does not score a touchdown, or if the scores are tied after each team has possession of the ball, the next score wins. (If the team with first possession of the ball commits a safety on first possession, kickoff his team wins.)
Each team has 3 timeouts per ‘half’. Although not technically halved as in regulation, two overtime hours are considered halves for all intents and purposes. This also means he will be given a two-minute caution towards the end of the second extra time, but it is highly unlikely that a winner will be decided by then. Also, coach challenges in overtime are not allowed.
The league is now averaging more than one game per season as the 2019 season saw four games of extra time. Given that the league has had the most games decided by 6 or less in the fourth quarter, and the most games scored within 1, it’s entirely possible that these overtime rules will apply this postseason. .
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