The sanity of the NFL lies in the hands of eight men.
This is the time of year when the league's Competition Committee meets, reviews film and comes up with rule changes for the coming season. New Orleans coach Sean Payton, Giants co-owner John Mara, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones, Falcons president Rich McKay, Packers president Mark Murphy, Broncos general manager John Elway and Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome have already started the process of putting their heads together on recommendations that would add precision and safety to an often chaotic game.
But this year, the job is even more complicated. They have to bring the league back to its senses.
They have to change the idea of what, exactly, constitutes a catch.
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As seen over the past couple of seasons, this is no small matter. It's no secret that some reviewed reversals of catches have bent the minds of players, coaches and fans like pretzel dough.
Tomlin himself was victimized in December when a review robbed Steelers tight end Jesse James of what would have been a go-ahead touchdown against the Patriots in any year outside of this mad, survivalist era.
You think Jerry Jones' kid didn't choke on his soda when Dez Bryant went acrobatic on a fourth-down throw to the 1-yard line during the Cowboys' 2015 divisional playoff game against the Packers, only to see it challenged and reversed because the ball popped out after he bounced on the turf?
Even the committee agreed it should have remained a completion.
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The fog around what qualifies as a catch has become so frustrating that some fans have simply stopped watching.
Thus, the committee's challenge: to sell ownership on a common-sense solution.
The eight men met for four days before the recently concluded scouting Combine, combing through hours of controversial catches. They will meet again before presenting their recommendation sometime during the March 25-28 owners meetings in Orlando, Florida.
It should be a simple one. Get rid of the "survive the ground" aspect of the rule.
If it looks like a catch, it is a catch.
As long as the receiver controls the ball before he contacts the ground, it's a good reception.
Especially in the end zone.
There is no reason in the world why a pass should be treated differently than a running play when it comes to the end zone. Runners score touchdowns by simply breaking the front plane of the goal line. The play is dead after that, and neither the swat of an opposing player, the body of a teammate or the force of ball hitting ground can bring it back to life.
The same should go for receivers. Control with two feet inbounds or a Jesse James-like stretch before a knee hits outside the end zone should constitute six points.
That still leaves plenty of room for replay challenges. Placement of the feet and knees will always be fair game. So should any determination of control on simultaneous contact.
But requiring a receiver landing hard to maintain total control as he rolls, writhes or rises for a quick sprint to the hot dog stand always was beyond reason.
It's up to the committee to fix the mess. After all, the Competition Committee itself came up with the original rule in 1982.
It worked fine back in the bad old days before replay. But its interpretation changed once technology entered the officiating game. What started as a receiver needing to possess the ball "to the ground" morphed into "completing the process of a catch," "making a football move," "clearly becoming a runner," and finally "surviving the ground."
That last point of emphasis is what's killing the game. Well, that along with national anthem protests, miscreant players and the salary cap.
The committee can't do anything about the last three. But it has to correct this one issue.
It can't be that hard. Catch and control. Once the receiver goes down, the play goes with it.
It's just common sense, something the league could use a little of at this point.
Follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino
