Column Stuff You Might Have Heard
New NFL overtime policy shifts sudden death to regulation time

The NFL has announced that its sudden death overtime policy will be changed for the 2010 season — a move that has been praised by the many critics of the league's overtime format. But a second look at the new rule reveals that the league merely shifted sudden death to regulation time. "We like the sudden death format," said commissioner Roger Goodell. "That's why it was in place for so many years. It wasn't an accident. Using it in regulation will require teams to be at their best right from the opening kickoff." Under the new sudden death regulation format, most games will not last more than five or 10 minutes, a fact Goodell says is best for the players and the league. "Shorter games keep our players healthier," he said. "It also allows us to schedule five or six games for each team every Sunday. Once the first game is over, we'll just kick everyone out of the stadium and then sell more tickets. I don't know why we didn't think of this earlier."