Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - There were a handful of rule proposals suggested by NFL teams this past week, and, at least, one of them will definitely impact the Bills, if it gets adopted.
Let’s take a look at some of the proposed rules for the 2025 season:
Tush Push
The Green Bay Packers would like to see the league ban the “Tush Push”, the play made famous by the Philadelphia Eagles. (I much prefer calling it the “Brotherly Shove” as opposed to “Tush Push”.) The Eagles have been nearly unstoppable with that play, and the Bills have put it to good use with their 6-foot-5, 237-pound quarterback, Josh Allen.
Under the Packers’ proposal, a 10-yard penalty would be assessed if the quarterback is pushed from behind.
Bills head coach Sean McDermott is a member of the league’s competition committee, which votes on any proposals before they go to the owners for their vote.
"My strong feeling is, ‘Let's make sure that what we are doing keeps our players healthy and safe,’" said McDermott when asked about the play during a media session at the NFL Combine last month. "I don't know what the right word is, the physics of it scare me, in terms of some of this and the positioning of heads or spines or whatever. That scares me.
"I don't see ours as a full-fledged Tush Push. I think that's also a chapter of the conversation that needs to get some weight and put some time, in terms of what's defined as a Tush Push. I think we need to end up in the right spot as soon as possible, wherever that takes us."
If it were up to me, I would leave it alone for now. I would have to see some data that shows an increase in injuries resulting from that specific play.
Honestly, I get more worried on plays where a running back is carrying the ball, hits the pile and then his teammates are pushing him from behind while the other team is trying to stop the play. That is a whole lot of big, strong guys meeting in one spot.
Overtime changes
Philadelphia proposed that regular season overtime rules be the same as those for the playoffs, meaning both teams are guaranteed a possession even if the first possession of overtime ends with a touchdown.
This one is easy. Of course the overtime rules should be the same in the regular season and the playoffs.
The Eagles also proposed extending overtime back to 15 minutes. I'm fine if they leave it at 10 minutes.
Pass defense infractions
The Detroit Lions don't want to see an automatic first down awarded after defensive holding or illegal contact. By the way, the Lions led the league in those penalties last season with 11.
I've always wondered why a first down requires 10 yards, but a 5-yard penalty for holding or illegal contact carries a first down with it. If you want to keep both of those infractions as 5-yard penalties, then take away the automatic first down.
If you think defenses would just hold opponents to prevent a big play, then make the penalty cost more, like 10 or even 15 yards.
Playoff seeding
The Lions also have a proposal regarding a change to playoff seeding. They propose to have regular season records used for playoff seeding instead of division titles.
This is long overdue, and the owners should absolutely approve this. The current format awards average teams who win a bad division, and penalizes better teams who were in tougher divisions.
Look at last season for an example. The Minnesota Vikings went 14-3 in the regular season, but ended up as a Wild Card team because the Lions won the NFC North with a 15-2 record. The Vikings ended up being a 5-seed, and went on the road to face a Los Angeles Rams team that was only 10-7, but got the fourth seed based on winning the NFC West.
Even the 12-5 Washington Commanders was forced to play a road playoff game against a 10-7 Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that was seeded higher because someone had to win the NFC South.
Two years ago, Tampa Bay won their division with a 9-8 record and got to host their Wild Card matchup against an 11-6 Eagles squad.
The league has always said it wants winning a division to carry some weight. It does. It guarantees you a playoff spot, but it should not guarantee home field. The body of work over a 17-game schedule should carry more weight.
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Owners will meet March 30-April 2 in West Palm Beach, Florida. I will gladly volunteer to cover those meetings if our own Sal Capaccio doesn't want to go.
At least 24 votes will be needed for any proposals to be approved.