The NFL simply has never heard expressions like “Let sleeping dogs lie” and “Don’t tamper with success.”
The NFL is a multi-BILLION-dollar industry, and everything works fine as is. Tom Brady cheats, Ray Rice beats his wife, Ray Lewis gets into an altercation in a crowded bar with 100 witnesses, the victims end up dead, and Ray Lewis walks away…no matter what kind of shenanigans the NFL goes through, it survives. It thrives.
When something is thriving, you leave it alone. Except in Roger Goodell’s mind. When things are perfect, that’s when you must change.
Extra points will now be kicked from the 15 yardline. This is a really stupid change.
The argument is that the extra point has become so automatic, that there is no challenge in it anymore. True, but that is the way it’s supposed to be. It’s not a challenge, it’s just a little something extra.
It’s a way to ensure that a touchdown is more valuable than two field goals, because both are worth 6 points, but the extra point makes it 7, and thus more valuable than 2 field goals. Joe Philbin hasn’t learned the value of a touchdown, but he’ll get it eventually.
The defending team can now score 2 points if they return a botched extra point. So now if you score a touchdown, you might go up 6-0, 7-0, 8-0, or 6-2. Does this sound like a good idea to you guys? We hate it.
A touchdown can net you between 5-8 points. Imagine in hockey if you put the puck in the net. You might get a goal for that, or maybe a goal and a half. What’s a grand slam worth in baseball? Four runs? That’s not fair to the fans. Let’s make it 3, with the possibility to earn up to 5, but also the caveat that you may only get 2. It all depends.
What if you’re down by 5 late in the game, 21-16, and you score a dramatic touchdown. You just went up 22-21. Game over, right? Wrong! The defense still has a chance to block your kick or stuff your 2-point conversion and get 2 points themselves.
Wait a minute!!! Our offense just scored a touchdown, but the DEFENSE has a chance to get two points out of the deal? it’s ludicrous.
Shame on the NFL for endorsing this convoluted scoring system and for the 30 idiot teams who voted for it.
More important, shame on the NFL for thinking we wanted this.
You’ve got me all confused lol. I get the 6-0, 7-0, 8-0 theory, but nothing else. Then you say a touchdown is 5-8 points…where does the 5 come from? For the other team to get the 2 points on a blocked field goal do the just have to catch the ball or can it hit the ground and be recovered like a fumble? I’m assuming they can just lay on the ball instead of returning it. How are 2 point conversions going to work now…are the gonna be on the 15 yard line now too and is it 2 points if they recover that too? I honestly don’t know what to think. To me it does sound kinda exciting, but I’m afraid Sturgis will miss easy kicks again this year.
Btw you misspelled hockey 🙂
I’m so glad your back admin. We all missed you. I’m hoping for another article or to hear your comments about the deflate gate ordeal and the punishment handed out.
I very much dislike the PAT the way it was structured because as Bill Belicheck pointed out many times they are “non plays”
http://www.sportingcharts.com/articles/nfl/how-many-extra-point-kicks-are-missed-on-average-in-the-nfl.aspx
I actually agree with his reasoning and that was in 2011 when the PAT % was about 98.something%
Last year it was in the 99% really making it a no play
I feel like it would be nice to have a little more scoring diversity similar to the way kickers have changed the game over the last seven years by being able to kick field goals from ridiculous distances. That has really changed the dynamic of many games when those big legged kickers are on the sideline I think this could have a similar impact for teams with poor kickers. It will change the dynamic of those games.
In the end admin could be right. It may be stupid but it will be interesting to see.
We can disagree on this, but I actually like the concept of a non-play. It’s just an “extra” point that comes as a reward for making a touchdown. It’s supposed to be a given, and 99% of the time it is.
What’s gonna happen when Goodell gets bored with the 2-point conversion? He’ll back up the ball to the 10 yardline and make it a 4-point conversion? And then a 120-point conversion if you score from the 30? But then do you get to kick an extra point after scoring your 30-yard-conversion TD? It’s getting too complex, and will favor the high-offense teams. new England will prosper again, and the Dolphins will suffer.
Also I think it’s 4 – 6 – 7 or 8
4 would be if you score a TD = 6
Then botch the PAT and the other team scores they get 2 points for a total increase to the TD scoring team of only 4
5 I don’t know how admin came up with that but we will see
My math was probably off! It’s cool if you guys disagree and find this all more exciting. But I think it detracts from the game when your net gain after a touchdown can be as high as 8 points (TD + 2-pts = 8-0) or as low as 4 points (TD + defense returns your attempt= 6-2).
I just cannot accept that if you score on the opening drive, the score immediately after can be 6-2.
So basically an extra point is a 25 yard field goal…. not a big deal…. so the 99% drops down to 93% or whatever. It makes fake PATs more interesting.
Let me introduce my proposal… Imagine an upright the same size as the outer ones but painted RED and positioned in the middle of the crossbar. If the kicker hits the red upright on a PAT then it’s worth 3 points. If he misses it then the extra point would stand anyway. If the kicker hits it on a field goal attempt then it’s worth 5 points. Again, if he misses it then it would remain at 3 points. 2 point conversions would still remain in place. This would elevate the value/importance of kickers as well as special teams. This puts the SPECIAL back in special teams.
Thoughts?