The divisional round matchup between the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs was one of the most electric and exciting NFL games we've seen in a while. Neutral fans watching the game had nothing to complain about except for the the fact that Josh Allen and the Bills did not get a chance to respond on offense in overtime. While the NFL overtime rules are not even that big of an issue, one small change that could make them better is allowing both teams to get at least one possession even if the team that gets the ball first scores a touchdown.
Over the years, there have been many playoff games in the NFL that have come down to overtime and in the overtime period, the game ended on the first drive because of a touchdown scored on the first possession. Take the 2014 NFC Championship game for instance. Green Bay had to drive down the field and tied the game at 22 all to force overtime against the Seahawks, but Aaron Rodgers never got back on the field as Russell Wilson threw the game sealing touchdown to Jermaine Kearse to seal the deal and send the Seahawks back to the Super Bowl.
The year after Green Bay's heartbreaking loss in the NFC Championship game, they would suffer another overtime playoff loss the year after, this time to the Arizona Cardinals. In the divisional round of the 2015-16 season, the Packers went on the road as underdogs against Arizona and nearly pulled off the upset. Aaron Rodgers completed a Hail Mary pass to Jeff Janis in the end zone at the end of regulation to set up the overtime period. An overtime period, where Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay offense once again never saw the field. Larry Fitzgerald scored the game winning touchdown and the Cardinals advanced to the NFC Championship. This was another game that made you wonder, what if Rodgers had just gotten one shot to respond?
Another recent example of a huge playoff game being decided in overtime was the AFC Championship game during the 2018-2019 season. Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs rallied down double figures to the Patriots to send the game into overtime tied at 31 all. The Patriots won the the toss and scored on the first posession and Patrick Mahomes did not get a chance to answer. Mahomes' first season as a starter came to a heartbreaking end as he came so close to taking his team to the Super Bowl.
The most recent case of one and done overtime games was this past Sunday. The Bills and Chiefs entered overtime with the game tied at 36 after 25 total points were scored inside the final two minutes of regulation. The Chiefs got the ball first in overtime and scored a touchdown to end the game. This game was one of craziest we've seen in a while and was going back and forth up until the very end and unfortunately, someone had to lose.
If the NFL tweaked the overtime rules slightly to allow the other team to get a chance to respond to an opening drive touchdown, the games would of course go longer which is not the most beneficial thing for the players, but it would allow for the other team to have one last chance to save their season. The team that wins the coin toss does not win in overtime every time, but right now it does feel like whoever wins the coin toss is going to win the game and it especially felt that way last night because of how tired both defenses were.
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