NFL likely to implement another rule change in response to a Chiefs playoff win over Bills
The Chiefs lost the coin toss at the start of overtime of the 2018 AFC Championship Game and never touched the ball as the Patriots scored a touchdown and won 37-31.
That didn’t impel the NFL to change the overtime rule, which at the time said a game ends if a team scores a touchdown in the extra period.
Three years later, the Chiefs won the coin toss at the start of overtime and the Bills never touched the ball as KC scored a touchdown and won an epic 42-36 AFC Divisional playoff game.
Months later, the NFL changed the overtime rule to ensure each team had a possession in overtime of a playoff game.
Now, in the wake of another Chiefs victory over the Bills, the league is poised to implement another rule change.
During their 32-29 win in the AFC Championship Game, the Chiefs stuffed Bills quarterback Josh Allen on a fourth-and-inches sneak thanks to film study. Fans in areas like upstate New York, southern Ohio and Colorado believed Allen got that first down and bemoaned the lack of technology to determine a first down.
After the game, an NBC Sports reporter wrote a story saying it was time for the NFL to use technology to spot the ball. Many others agreed, and the league listened.
An NFL.com story said Wednesday that the league announced “Hawk-Eye technology for measuring the line to gain is slated to replace chains as the primary measurement system for regular-season games in 2025.”
Kimberly Fields, NFL senior vice president of football operations, told USA Today the Hawk-Eye system received “extensive testing” in 2024.
That story explained how the new measurement will work. “Cameras inside the stadium ... track players, officials and the ball. After the ball is spotted, the system notifies officials if a first down was achieved.”
The system hasn’t been officially approved. All rules changes will be voted on during the NFL’s league meeting, which is March 30-April 2 in Palm Beach, Florida.
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 8:39 AM.
