Narrowing the Goalposts - Good Idea?

[MickeyDavis]

The NFL is thinking about narrowing the goalposts from 18.5 to 14 feet. They are going to do it for the Pro Bowl. Thoughts? i like it. Makes the 45 and under FG's less automatic.

[Ron Swanson]

I think the NFL needs to stop tweaking things that aren't issues in the first place. I don't know if I like it. Sure, it makes 40+ yard FG's less automatic, but it also puts outdoor kickers/stadiums at a sizable disadvantage.

Goodell seems to really be taking this NFL to Arena League Football transformation very seriously.....

[Newz]

I personally don't like it, but it doesn't matter that much to me.

I wish they'd start leaving the game alone as opposed to constantly trying to change things.

[JayMKE]

Ugh no, they need to stop messing with the rules and worry about having a better flow of the game with less flags. I hate Goodell so much.

[MartyConlonOnTheRun]

I hate when they change stuff for no reason and makes comparable statistics no longer comparable. It's a completely arbitrary number either way so why change it?

[Ron Swanson]

I hate when they change stuff for no reason and makes comparable statistics no longer comparable. It's a completely arbitrary number either way so why change it?

Like everything that Fuhrer Goodell does, this is all about increasing point totals. Harder field goals means more teams going for it on 4th down and more TD opportunities.

More points = more casual fanz, More casual fanz = more money. Goodell eventually wants 55-48 scores to become the norm.......God I **** hate that guy....

[LUKE23]

My God is Goodell a bum.

[emunney]

I think the NFL needs to stop tweaking things that aren't issues in the first place. I don't know if I like it. Sure, it makes 40+ yard FG's less automatic, but it also puts outdoor kickers/stadiums at a sizable disadvantage.

Goodell seems to really be taking this NFL to Arena League Football transformation very seriously.....

I can buy the argument that it puts outdoor and cold weather teams at a slightly greater disadvantage when it comes to competing for ther services of kickers. But I don't think that's going to be a big deal as money is still by far the main determinating factor there, and there are only 32 jobs in the world.

Ultimately as long as both teams are kicking on the same sized goalposts in the same game, they chould change them every week for all I care.

What this is going to do is encourage teams to more often go for it on 4th down, which they should be doing anyway, but whatev.

[ReasonablySober]

Eliminate special teams.

[humanrefutation]

Eh.

[trwi7]

Instead of narrowing the goalposts they should extend the height of the uprights so balls can't go over the uprights and it's a complete judgment call of one ref where the ball was when it went over the uprights.

[thomchatt3rton]

Ive got a couple ideas.
Have the refs come out and spin the kicker around 3 times right before the snap, just like a child before he pins the tail on the donkey at a birthday party.
Or, maybe just make the kicker put on an eyepatch before the kick? No depth perception.


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[WiscoKing13]

Instead of narrowing the goalposts they should extend the height of the uprights so balls can't go over the uprights and it's a complete judgment call of one ref where the ball was when it went over the uprights.

Didn't they do that this year?

Edit: Extra 5 feet

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap200000 ... e-extended

[DH34Phan]

Make field goals worth 1 point inside 40, 2 points between 40-49, and 3 points 50+.

[El Duderino]

I'm surprised so many here are against this. To me, this would be a good change.

Kicking field goals, especially longer ones in the 40 to 50 plus range used to be much more of a crapshoot. Get good kickers in a dome and a 45 yard FG is almost a chip-shot today. I'd love for coaches to have to think harder before deciding to kick a 40 plus yard FG. For coaches to go for it more often on 4th down vs say choosing instead to kick a 52 yard field goal. Hopefully this happens.

[El Duderino]

Make field goals worth 1 point inside 40, 2 points between 40-49, and 3 points 50+.

Way to gimmicky. Plus, you would be penalizing an offense for getting deeper in an occupants territory and kicking a FG.

[jakecronus8]

No.

[HKPackFan]

I'm not a fan of it.


Although I'm wondering would it make a guy like Crosby more valuable? Would he gain a competitive advantage over a dome kicker that comes to GB and isn't used to the swirling winds? Cold weather, wind, etc are all these variables now heightened because the goalpost is more narrow?


Or maybe just accuracy becomes more important so overall the most accurate kicker wins.


I do think it's about forcing teams to go for it at the 25-35 yard line instead of settling for 3pts.

[MickeyDavis]

Make field goals worth 1 point inside 40, 2 points between 40-49, and 3 points 50+.

So if a team is down 3 in the closing minute and completes a pass to the 15 they would take a sack to move the ball back to the 33 to get a longer field goal? I don't like it. I'm not in favor of varying the points awarded at all but if forced to I would do it the opposite. Give more points for closer field goals. On the surface that might not make sense but I never want to reward a team for being farther from the goal line.

[BUCKnation]

Getting rid of the extra point would be a better first step. Make it like the old video game Blitz where the extra point is either automatically added on or the team goes for 2. Extra points are just a waste of time with a 98% success rate.