NFL Considering Nifty Way To Examine Possible Rule Change

The NFL is all about finding ways to make the game more exciting for fans. That often includes making life more difficult for kickers.

It’s been felt over the past few years that the constant precision with which kickers have been hitting their marks has become just a little too dull. So they took a big step in the direction of making life just a little more stressful for that often forgotten group when the league moved extra point attempts back to the 15-yard line. Needless to say it led to a record increase for missed attempts and more than a few altered decisions by teams to go for two-point conversions more often.

Now the league has plans to research the possibility of another change in the near future. That would involve narrowing the goal posts. It would mark the first significant change made to that area since the posts were moved from the front of the end zone to the back of the end zone in 1974 to make life more difficult for the new wave of soccer-style kickers sweeping the league.

VP of Officiating Dean Blandino says there is a plan in place to research whether the time has come for another change.

"Over the past three seasons, NFL placekickers have been more accurate than ever on field goals, making 85%.“The discussion has really revolved around narrowing the uprights. That would be one way to affect both the extra point and the field goal. (Success rates) have continued to climb over the years as our field-goal kickers and that whole process has become so specialized, from long snapper to holder to kicker.“We’ll do some studies this year.”In one such study, which Postmedia learned after speaking with Blandino, the NFL will have a computer chip inserted into each kick ball used during the preseason. These “instrumented” balls — with accompanying technology — will allow the league’s competition committee to determine, among other things, precisely how far inside the uprights all successful field goals (as well as extra points) have been kicked."

Seems technology knows no bounds this day and age. One can imagine kickers around the league aren’t happy about the prospect of their jobs becoming more difficult. However, there may be an unintended side effect. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers showed that when they selected Florida State kicker Roberto Aguayo in the 2nd round of the draft. As the need for better accuracy on field goals and extra points goes up, the value and desire for top kickers will as well. Thus they’ll be drafted higher and also paid more.

At least that’s the theory. Time will tell if the NFL decides to follow through on this plan. Their data will tell much.