11/20/2007

ATTN: Jeff Fisher
Tennessee Titans
Baptist Sports Park
460 Great Circle Rd.
Nashville, TN 37228

Dear Coach;

I know you are a member of the Competition Committee, so I figured it would do no harm to contact you. I have an idea for a simple, elegant improvement to the rules that I would like to share.

Instant replay is meant to be there to insure the right call is made, but the loop hole of the “once the next play happens you can’t throw the flag” nonsense cuts into that significantly. Last night I watched you waffle on the sidelines b/c you didn’t have the time to decide if a review challenge was warranted. Under the current system that should NEVER happen to a coach, a team, or a fan base. (Turned out the Broncos rendered that moot, but that instance is a perfect example b/c you were almost gypped out of 6 points!)

There is an easy fix for this: extra points don’t count as a play.

No need to change the rule, because that is already true! No time runs off the clock anyway, and there is always a commercial break after a touchdown. If they adjusted the rule so that a team had until the following kick off to challenge, then the decision of whether to contest a call or not could be an informed one and the rule would be more in keeping with the spirit of the system.

It won’t make games longer b/c the review could actually be taking place during the scheduled commercial. Go ahead and let the teams line up and kick the PAT, and if the on-field ruling of a score stands, then the result is recorded: it counts if it is good and doesn’t if missed. If the score is overturned, then it’s like that play never happened. No harm done either way. Who can argue against that obvious improvement?

Thanks for hearing me out. I hope you agree with me and are willing to propose the concept to the powers that be.

Sincerely,

Ken Head
kenhead@howzabout.org

PS - Field goals aren’t reviewable?! They’re a SCORING PLAY!! How do you stand it? That needs to be the next fix.