I think it is time to extend the field

Mark
Posts: 148
Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2014 10:52 pm

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by Mark »

I like the fact that the CFL and the NFL are different. I don't want either one to copy the other.
rhickok1109
Posts: 1473
Joined: Sun Oct 12, 2014 8:57 am

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by rhickok1109 »

Yeah, it's really scary! Teams averaged 23.0 points per game in 2021! That's almost as many as in 1948, when they averaged 23.2 per game!

It's obviously time to panic :D
racepug
Posts: 783
Joined: Fri Feb 12, 2021 9:18 pm
Location: Somewhere in the continental U.S.

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by racepug »

rhickok1109 wrote:Yeah, it's really scary! Teams averaged 23.0 points per game in 2021! That's almost as many as in 1948, when they averaged 23.2 per game!

It's obviously time to panic :D
:lol:
racepug
Posts: 783
Joined: Fri Feb 12, 2021 9:18 pm
Location: Somewhere in the continental U.S.

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by racepug »

Mark wrote:I like the fact that the CFL and the NFL are different. I don't want either one to copy the other.
On the whole I don't disagree with you. But I still think the C.F.L. does a better job with defensive pass interference than the N.F.L. does.
RRMarshall
Posts: 279
Joined: Wed Apr 05, 2017 2:12 pm

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by RRMarshall »

It's just not the QBs but the WR's getting the hands off treatment. Easing up on PI would help, maybe even allowing the chuck rule within 5 yards again might help. But the Arena League comparison while tongue-in-cheek is getting more apt with each successive season. I keep waiting for the pendulum to swing back to the power running game again with LBs now prized for speed and mobility instead of size and strength. Can you imagine the 1982-83 Washington OL with RB John Riggins taking on today's defensive fronts? We saw first hand in SB XVII what happens to a speed-based defensive front like the Killer Bees having to defend against that relentless power attack for 60 minutes. Eventually they are worn down to submission. But that would drain the clock and reduce scoring which the league doesn't want. So here we are...
Reaser
Posts: 1553
Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2014 11:58 am
Location: WA

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by Reaser »

1948 has always been the go to counter the past decade or so when "scoring" is brought up. Never thought it made the point it purports to make.

This season became the 6th to average 23.0+ ppg for NFL offenses:

1. 2020 - 24.8
2. 2013 - 23.4
3. 2018 - 23.3
4. 1948 - 23.2*
5. 1965 - 23.1*
6. 2021 - 23.0

* - both years not all the talent was in the NFL, obviously. Players were in the AAFC/Canada, Canada/AFL, respectively. With much less teams and much less games both for teams and league. So when you put up 50 points against a horrible team/defense like the Boston Yanks -teams that bad don't exist 'today'- it counts more for the average. Or, for example, a team having a 63-point game, it raises the league ppg average much more in 1948, and also more in 1965, than it would in 2021.

Outliers, but not completely because of course '47 and '49 were high-scoring, so was post-AAFC '50. As well as '63 and '64. But, if you look at all the NFL seasons that avg. 22 or more ppg you get:

2020s: 2020, 2021
2010s: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019
2000s: 2008
1960s: 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965
1950s: 1950, 1952, 1958
1940s: 1947, 1948, 1949

Looks a bit different than just "but, 1948" now. 11 of the last 12 seasons (all but 2017, the anomaly) are in the top 22 NFL league ppg seasons. Include 2008 and it's 12 of the last 14 seasons (exclude 2009's 21.5ppg and 2017's 21.7 ppg, which are still high-scoring relative to "history of the NFL.")

However, "scoring" always leaves out a huge part of "it's too easy to score points now" since it excludes how obviously easier than ever it is to move the ball. Top-10 seasons offensive yards per game are: 2020, 2015, 2018, 2016, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2012, 2011, 2021. Shocker. Or if you do Top-10 seasons offensive yards per play: 2020, 2018, 2019, 2016, 2015, 2011, 2013, 2021, 2012, 2014. Again, shocker.

Don't really need numbers, everyone can see it when they watch the games, it's obvious. But the numbers "back it up" in this case.
User avatar
TanksAndSpartans
Posts: 1153
Joined: Wed Nov 18, 2015 1:05 am

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by TanksAndSpartans »

@Reaser - really good post.

Would you increase the field length or decrease the number of downs? Those seem a bit drastic to me.
JuggernautJ
Posts: 1379
Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2014 7:14 pm
Location: NinerLand, Ca.

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by JuggernautJ »

TanksAndSpartans wrote: Would you increase the field length or decrease the number of downs? Those seem a bit drastic to me.
I wouldn't change anything at the basis of the game of American football (like the downs or field dimension) but if one did want to make a subtle change to the basic structure of the game to decrease the offensive "advantage" one could narrow the field.
Even a mild adjustment would make a big difference in favor of the defense.
The field is currently 53 1/3 yards wide. Changing it to 50 yards wide would tighten up the zones somewhat. Making a change of 5 or more yards would have a dramatic effect on the game (imo).

Also, this change would be all but invisible to the casual observer and appear to not alter the game at all.
Reaser
Posts: 1553
Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2014 11:58 am
Location: WA

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by Reaser »

TanksAndSpartans wrote:@Reaser - really good post.

Would you increase the field length or decrease the number of downs? Those seem a bit drastic to me.
I wouldn't do either of those things. All I'd change is letting teams play defense, including being able to hit QB's. Lot of stuff QBs in this era do doesn't impress me, at all. Mahomes 'famous' run against the Titans only happens because defensive players treat QBs with the kids gloves, because first they were penalized if they didn't, and then they were conditioned to do so. So they don't even risk touching a QB, even if they're running for a TD! Or like Watson's 'magical escape' in the playoffs against the Bills, in a previous era he would have been blown up, at a minimum a sack. Instead free rush tries to wrap and roll to lay him on the ground gently with a pillow under his head, while second-in LB tries to run into him and wrap him up and hold him, snuggle him tight but not too tight, of course, can't get a flag. First player in slides off, second player in bounces off, Watson completes pass and fans/media go wild! "All-time great play!" No, it was a product of the era, which distorts the sport and distorts the outcomes of games. That's just how I see it, though.
User avatar
Bryan
Posts: 2509
Joined: Tue Oct 14, 2014 8:37 am

Re: I think it is time to extend the field

Post by Bryan »

I don't think the field should be extended, but even if you did I'm not sure if it would have all that much effect. In the last decade, the game has "evolved" into red zone offense. It's so easy to move the ball, that its almost obligatory that the offense will at least get to the opponent's 20 yard line. If the teams are somewhat evenly matched, the NFL games boil down to who can execute well in the red zone and get TDs instead of FGs. Extending the field will just slightly delay the offense's foray into the red zone. I remember in the Pats-Falcons Super Bowl when NE was down 16...it was going to be easy for Tom Brady to score two TDs, but the hard part was going to be converting the two 2pt conversion plays. Sounds dumb, but that's the current era of the NFL.

Someone else mentioned in another thread that Aaron Rodgers isn't good at methodically driving his team downfield in crunchtime, which is true, but Rodgers' greatness lies in his ability to execute in the red zone. Perhaps in a different era Rodgers wouldn't be so effective/valuable, but he is a great QB for his time.

Sidenote #1: Not to single him out, but its ridiculous that Patrick Mahomes can run up the sidelines and then step out of bounds when he's getting hit to draw a 15 yard penalty. I hate it when QBs are given that call.

Sidenote #2: I never played lacrosse, but what is the point of the field size? You get the ball and you just run to the other team's goal. Is the distance between the two goals supposed to tire people out?
Post Reply