NFL Overtime Rules: League Passes Minor Change With Puzzling Explanation

The NFL finally is changing its overtime format — although it’s not exactly a massive overhaul.

The league on Tuesday passed a rule change that will shorten regular-season overtimes from 15 minutes to 10 minutes, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported, citing a league official.

The minor tweak should carry some significance, as four games were decided in the final five minutes of overtime in the last season alone. And as Pro Football Talk’s Darin Gantt pointed out, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, not the Detroit Lions, would have made the playoffs last year had this rule been in effect. (The Bucs lost to the Oakland Raiders in the final minutes of overtime.)

But shorter overtimes also could lead to more ties, which isn’t great for anyone. So, why the change? According to NFL Media’s Judy Battista, the tweak is being deemed a “player safety issue” brought about by “concerns about the number of additional plays if teams play a full 15-minute overtime.”

If that explanation seems like a stretch, that’s because it is. As ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” reported Tuesday, there were 32,732 total plays during last year’s NFL regular season, and just 60 of them came in the final five minutes of overtime. In short: Lopping a few minutes off the end of rarely-played overtimes won’t help preserve player safety as much as, say, eliminating Thursday night games or cutting down on preseason contests.

Still, owners are expected to pass the new overtime rule Tuesday at the NFL Spring Meeting in Chicago, along with a few other notable changes. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is expected to announce more relaxed celebration rules, as well as two other changes involving roster cuts and injured reserve policies.

Thumbnail photo via Bob Donnan/USA TODAY Sports Images