If you were holding your breath on the NFL overhauling its replay system this year, go ahead and exhale. It's not happening.
League spokesman Greg Aiello announced on Twitter that teams at the NFL Annual Meeting have approved adding replay review for the game clock at the end of the second quarter, fourth quarter and overtime if more than one second is remaining. Teams also authorized the league to research the use of fixed cameras and stadium video in replay systems.
Other than those two measures -- well, let's call it one measure and one half-measure -- all other replay proposals were voted down.
The announcement comes one month after Jeff Fisher said at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis that the NFL's Competition Committee received multiple proposals on the expansion of replay, the largest number of proposals he could recall in his time with the committee.
Clearly there was a spirit of change in the air after some high-profile official controversies this past season, but teams opted for a more conservative approach in these clear-eyed days of late March.
Teams also approved five safety enhancement rules, including the introduction of medical timeouts, new standards on peel-back blocks, protection of defenseless receivers, increased enforcement of chop blocks and a ban on pushing teammates at the line of scrimmage.
One proposal that never made it to the teams? Competition Committee chairman Rich McKay said on ESPN that the Colts withdrew their gorgeous 9-point touchdown proposal prior to a vote. On the plus side, it gives Vince McMahon an idea in the event of an XFL reboot.
The extra-point proposal will have to wait for another time. Giants owner John Mara told NFL Media's Judy Battista on Tuesday that the proposal to modify the tried-and-true extra-point attempt has been tabled. There were discussions to move the extra-point try back, making it a longer attempt, or move it to the 1-yard line, encouraging teams to go for two.
UPDATE: In a move that will make Baltimore fans happy, NFL owners passed Wednesday the rule proposal making the practice of players declaring themselves ineligible and then lining up in the slot illegal. Players reporting ineligible must line up in the tackle box. The Patriotsused that tactic to much success in a divisional playoff win over the Ravens this past January.
One team in particular was happy to see the change.
The NFL also voted down the Chicago Bears' proposal that would have guaranteed each team a possession in overtime.
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