An important change to the NFL's overtime rules can't satisfy any Buffalo Bills fans that are still bitter about the team's soul-crushing, season-ending loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in mid-January. But, nevertheless, change has arrived, and it can only make all 32 teams happier for many seasons to come.
League owners approved a modified proposal for overtime rules on Tuesday, that'll guarantee both teams one possession during playoff games that enter the extra period. This new and desired wrinkle won't apply to regular season games, however. From Weeks 1 to 18, the team with first possession can still win by scoring a touchdown. The final voting tally for this change was 29-3.
"You've got 60 minutes to go out there and ball out -- the point isn't to go to overtime. It's not supposed to be fair," JR said during the JR SportBrief show on Tuesday. "That fairness is supposed to come in the 60 minutes of allotted time... The point is to avoid overtime... And I get it, it's exciting to have more football. It's exciting to give the other team a chance. So, in that regard, I'm not whining or complaining.
"I just look at the 60 minutes and say, that was supposed to be the time you take control. That's supposed to be the time where you went out there and bludgeoned each other out on the field. Where you took advantage of every second, every minute, and every play. But, this is the NFL. It's not just about the 60 minutes. It's about the entertainment value... You have 60 minutes to decide what you want the end result to be..."
The public outcry for overtime rule changes began immediately after the Bills fell to the Chiefs in the AFC divisional round. Despite orchestrating two clutch game-winning drives late in the fourth quarter, Josh Allen's botched coin toss in overtime ultimately dashed Buffalo's title hopes. Kansas City's high-octane offense only needed five minutes to score a touchdown, and the remarkably poor luck forced Allen to experience heartbreak on the sideline.
After the game, Allen didn't complain about the NFL's overtime rules, and how he didn't get a chance with the ball. He told reporters that Buffalo didn't make enough plays, and "we'd be celebrating" if the critical coin toss worked out in their favor. Rich McKay, who's the NFL competition committee chairman, said on Tuesday that, in a dozen overtime playoff games since 2010, the coin-toss winner went 10-2.
JR's complete thoughts on the NFL's new overtime rules can be accessed in the audio player above (conversation begins at 10:00 p.m. ET mark).
You can follow the JR SportBrief show on Twitter @JRSportBrief and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.