With the NFL season just underway, football scoreboards news has outlined what to expect this season in terms of rule changes. In the NFL meetings, which were held last week, the majority of the suggested rule changes were approved, and they are summarized below.

The overtime rule – Even if the opposition team scores a field goal in sudden death, the other team will get one chance to score. The team will then go for touchdown on the first possession, and if they manage this, the game is over. If both teams score field goals, then the previous sudden death rule will apply, in which the first team to score will win outright.

Defenseless receiver rule – If you are aware of the defenseless receiver rule, then this rule change is simple. Now this includes all players, which means that no one can throw themselves into a running back higher than shoulder level.

The play is dead when a helmet is lost – If the helmet comes off of the carrier of the ball during a play, the play is stopped and the ball is placed exactly where the helmet fell off. Nose tackles are not included in this rule, as they lose their helmet regularly.

The long snapper is better protected – During punts, it was previously not possible to line up over the long snapper. Players were allowed only to lean in towards the pads, but now the defense will be further from the long snapper.

Personal fouls on dead balls – The first half has come to an end, the play is dead, and player from the bench rushes onto the field and fouls a player. This fifteen-second penalty will now be carried forward to the next quarter.

Muffed punts – If a punt returner signals a fair catch, and then the ball comes of the shoulder pads, the other team cannot try to recover the ball until it has touched the ground. This gives the returner more chance to keep possession.

The football scoreboards rule – If the ball hits a scoreboard, or any other electronic devices and accessories which are hanging over the field, the play is cancelled and re-started. In this case no time will be taken from the clock.

The 10-second rule – If a review is made within the last 60 seconds of a half, and the clock was still running when the challenge was made, ten seconds will be taken from the clock. If teams have a time out left, they can use this to compensate for the loss of time.

For more information, go to:
en.wikipedia.org