Before readers get up in arms, no, tailgating is not on this list.
That is one of the few NFL traditions that can, will and should stand the test of time.There are a number of other traditions that remain for various reasons, most of which are convoluted and antiquated.Traditions are based on history, but those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. With that being said, here are a few traditions that need to be retired:
Current Overtime Rules
Overtime’s shouldn’t be decided on a coin flip.
The NFL needs to enact a system of rules that give both teams a chance to touch the ball.The new playoff system seems like a good enough example, but why only have it in the playoffs? Regular season games are meaningful too.
Pregame Coin Flip
The pregame coin flip has become obsolete, just make it like baseball.The away team should get the ball in the first half and the home team in the second.If the game goes overtime, then a coin flip can be used to determine possession. We don’t need this pointless “ceremony” every game.
Roughing the Passer
Blitzers shouldn’t be able to hit the QB three seconds after they release the ball, but the rules that protect quarterbacks are absolutely ridiculous.
Any sort of contact is automatically called a 15 yard penalty and a first down. At least some kind of “running into the QB” five-yard penalty should be considered so an “accidental” hit won’t destroy a defensive series.
Current Replay Rules
I won’t begin to try to describe what can and can’t be reviewed.What I will say is that it is convoluted and ridiculous.If replay is going to be used, and it will, make everything reviewable, everything. I’d much rather have a game be a few minutes longer if I knew that the right calls were being made.
The No Fun League
Touchdowns are exciting, for fans and for the players. Most NFL players score so infrequently that any touchdown is a chance to rejoice.Sadly, the NFL rarely lets players show their emotions without penalizing them. After a player scores a touchdown, let them go nuts for 30 seconds.
Cold Weather Cheerleader Outfits
Someone would have to be delusional to believe that cheerleaders were at the games to help lead the crowds cheers. Suffice it to say their biggest “assets” are their looks. Cold weather outfits make the cheerleaders’ jobs essentially obsolete. If you’re a cheerleader in a cold weather city, no sweats and jackets.
Mascots
Cheerleaders are at least fun to look at. Mascots, well, they’re…
That’s right, they are pointless. If fans are too bored by the game that they need a guy in a costume to entertain them, then they shouldn’t be at a football game.
Joe Buck
Some things are sacred, Joe Buck is not.
He is possibly the worst announcer in the history of sports and yet is the front-line guy for every FOX broadcast. The only way it would be worse is if he were paired with Tim McCarver.
The Postgame Handshake
I’ve got nothing against good sportsmanship.
I realize that many of these guys played with or against each other at a number of different levels. If they want to shake hands it’s fine, but don’t forces coaches to talk to each other.While a winning coach is probably fine with a handshake, the loser probably isn’t.
The Pro Bowl
While most All-Star games are dumb, the NFL’s is the most pointless.
The best players refuse to play, and those that do care so little about the game that the result is an unbelievably bad and poorly played game.
Other than a free trip to Hawaii, the players don’t care and in the end it’s merely a waste of an afternoon for everyone involved.