Rampage
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- Mar 19, 2019
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The NFL’s ultra-simple coin-toss procedures may become even more simple, because for some they apparently aren’t simple enough.
Last Sunday, referee Walt Anderson proved once again that common sense ain’t by twisting the Cowboys’ effort, after winning the toss, to defer the option to the second half into a desire by the Cowboys to kick to start the game, which would have given the Rams the option to receive to start the third quarter if the league office hadn’t intervened.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Competition Committee will discuss the mechanics of the toss in order to avoid another head-scratching heads-or-tails coin conundrum.
Apparently, the discussion will focus on streamlining the things a player must say. For now, the options are: (1) receive; (2) kick; and (3) defer.
It’s unclear how that could be made any more simple.
As to why it needs to be simple, the reason is obvious. Anderson screwed up. He should have heard “defer,” he only heard “kick,” and he instantly pounced on what would have been a nonsensical technical blunder by the Cowboys faster than Dwight Schrute makes a citizen’s arrest of a jaywalker.
So maybe instead of changing the things a player needs to say prior to the coin toss, maybe the league should simply tell its referees this: Whenever you’re about to do something think, ‘Would an idiot do that?’ And if they would, do not do that thing.