NFL Rule, Bylaw, and Resolution Changes

It wasn’t just photographs and interviews at the NFL Owners Meetings in Arizona this week. The real purpose of the meetings is league business and some of that business was voting on changes to the league’s riles, bylaws, and resolutions. Here are those that were approved.

Approved Rules

-Permit the use of “0” as a jersey numeral. Allow kickers and punters to use any jersey numeral between 0-49 and 90-99.

-Make the adjustment of the play clock following an instant replay reversal consistent with other timing rules. 

-Expand the replay official’s jurisdiction to allow for review on failed fourth-down attempts.

-Change the definition of a launch to leaving one or both feet. 

-Make the penalty for tripping a personal foul.

-Make the penalty for illegally handing the ball forward consistent with other illegal acts, such as illegal passes. 

-Make the penalty for illegal punts, drop kicks, or placekicks consistent with other illegal acts, such as illegal passes. 

-Prevent the offense from benefitting by an extension of the half as a result of their foul.

-Clarify use of the helmet against an opponent by removing the “butt, ram, or spear” language and incorporating those actions into impermissible use of the helmet. 

Approved Bylaws

-Change the claiming period to Monday for players who are waived on the Friday and Saturday of the last week of the regular season. 

-Insert strength of victory as the second tiebreaker for awarding contracts. 

-Adjust the rules for postseason signings to account for standard elevations rule; freeze postseason rosters at 4pm ET on the Wednesday following the last week of the regular season. 

Approved Resolutions

-Make the regular season and postseason transaction deadlines the same; change the transaction deadline for Saturday night postseason games to 4pm ET on Saturday. 

-Provide greater clarity as to a player’s availability for a game. 

-Establish one preseason roster reduction date and related procedures. 

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A few other potential changes were tabled until the owners gather again in May. 

-Replace the fading onside kick with a 4th-and-20 offensive play. 

-Make fair catches on kickoffs inside the 25-yard line a touchback. 

-Allow for an emergency third quarterback to be active on game day.

Another discussion that was tabled to the May meeting was the league’s power to flex Sunday games to Thursday night. Roger Goodell often honks that the NFL is all about the fans. It should be. The fans pay for all of it. Securing the power to move a game from Sunday to Thursday is a screaming “F—-you!” to the fans. NFL games have already been priced out of the budget of many families. Imagine a family of five that has saved, budgeted, and planned all year for an NFL game. Now, 15 days from that glorious day, Goodell and the suits decide that game is going to be played three days earlier than planned. Nice. Then there’s the competitive disadvantage forced on teams that have to play more than one game on a short week. Goodell and his NFL isn’t about the fans. It isn’t even about the players. The NFL is all about the money.