Alright, let’s talk about this NFL extra point thing. So, I was watching a game the other day, and I started wondering about the whole point-after-touchdown deal. You know, that kick they do after scoring a touchdown? I got curious about how far they actually kick it from.
First, I did a little digging. Turns out, it used to be way closer. They changed the rule a few years back. I remember it all started by watching some videos and reading up on it. They used to place the ball on the 2-yard line for the kick. Easy peasy, right? Most kickers could do that in their sleep. They wanted to make it a little more challenging and, well, more exciting I guess.
So, what did I do? I started watching a bunch of games, old and new. I grabbed my notebook and started jotting down notes, I got this notebook that has a lot of pages about NFL games. I wanted to see the difference. I even tried to find some stats online about how often they missed before and after the rule change. It was like a mini-research project, you know?
- Old Setup: Ball on the 2-yard line. Kick was basically a gimme.
- New Setup: Ball on the 15-yard line. Makes the kick longer, about 33 yards.
I spent a whole weekend just diving into this. I even measured out the distances in my backyard, just to get a feel for it. It felt like a simple task, but a long distance is a long distance, am I right? I don’t have any uprights, so I used my kid’s soccer goal. I’m no kicker, but let me tell you, that 33-yard kick is no joke! It’s way harder than it looks on TV. It looked like a short distance, but after I tried, man, I can tell it is a long distance!
And then there’s the whole two-point conversion thing. After the change, it’s still an option, but they still try it from the 2-yard line. Basically, the team can choose to go for one point with the kick, or try to run or pass the ball into the end zone from the 2-yard line for two points. I saw some teams trying it more often after the extra point kick got moved back. Makes sense, right? If the kick is harder, might as well try for two. Most teams will try to get 2 points, I think.
So, after all this, I realized how much that little rule change actually impacts the game. It’s not just about the kick itself, but also about the strategy teams use. It got me thinking about all the other little rules in football and how they shape the game. I had fun with it. Maybe I’ll look into another rule next week. Any suggestions? It is so much fun.
