Counter-Tre
03-30-2007, 04:24 PM
Have you guys heard about the Romo rule? Here's the skinny.
'Romo Rule' proposed for kicking balls
Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, Erik Williams, Roy Williams and Deion Sanders all prompted NFL rules changes in recent seasons.
Tony Romo could be next.
The NFL's competition committee is proposing changes to how the kicking balls (or K-balls) are prepared and which one is used. The proposal comes after Romo's botched hold late in the Cowboys' 21-20 loss to Seattle in a wild-card playoff game in January.
"Just to make sure that there is no perception -- it is not reality in our mind -- we're doing everything we can to make sure that people feel comfortable that the balls that are being played with in the games are appropriate," said Rich McKay, the Atlanta Falcons general manager who is co-chairman of the competition committee.
At their annual spring meeting next week in Phoenix, the 32 NFL owners are scheduled to vote on increasing the preparation time for balls used in the kicking game. The 12 K-balls would be numbered, and officials would do their best to ensure the balls are used sequentially, with the No. 1-marked ball being kicked with as long as it's available.
"They need to do something with those balls, so that the guys handling them -- the punters, the snappers, the holders -- at least have a chance," said Seahawks special teams coach Bruce DeHaven, who was with the Cowboys the past four seasons. "If they don't get those balls worked right initially, you can squeeze them and they pop right out of your hand."
The NFL introduced K-balls in 1999 after the competition committee decided specialists were doctoring balls for additional height and distance. Now, 12 balls marked with a "K" are delivered from the manufacturer, Wilson Sporting Goods, to officials the night before a game.
Two hours before kickoff, a representative from each team -- usually an equipment manager -- is allowed to rub down the K-balls. In the past, the allotted time was 20 minutes, which Cowboys kicker Martin Gramatica said Wednesday isn't enough time to get more than half of the balls worked in properly.
Conspiracy theorists believe the Seahawks' ball boys intentionally gave the Cowboys a slick, unused ball, leading to Romo's botched hold. It denied Gramatica a chance for a 19-yard field goal that would have given the Cowboys a 23-21 lead with 1:14 remaining.
McKay said other plays last season contributed to the proposal. In Week 16, Bengals long snapper Brad St. Louis botched a snap on an extra-point attempt late in Cincinnati's 24-23 loss to Denver.
"But do you think we'd even be talking about this if that [Romo play in Seattle] hadn't happened?" Cowboys punter Mat McBriar asked rhetorically Wednesday. "It's a weird thing, and I don't want to say that Seattle had any intention of doing anything [illegal]. I don't think they tampered with the balls.
"But, normally, only a handful of the allotted balls are used, and, come the fourth quarter, all the balls have been kicked or worked in a little bit by then, and to see a slick ball like that, that was disappointing. You don't expect brand-new balls in the fourth quarter."
'Romo Rule' proposed for kicking balls
Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, Erik Williams, Roy Williams and Deion Sanders all prompted NFL rules changes in recent seasons.
Tony Romo could be next.
The NFL's competition committee is proposing changes to how the kicking balls (or K-balls) are prepared and which one is used. The proposal comes after Romo's botched hold late in the Cowboys' 21-20 loss to Seattle in a wild-card playoff game in January.
"Just to make sure that there is no perception -- it is not reality in our mind -- we're doing everything we can to make sure that people feel comfortable that the balls that are being played with in the games are appropriate," said Rich McKay, the Atlanta Falcons general manager who is co-chairman of the competition committee.
At their annual spring meeting next week in Phoenix, the 32 NFL owners are scheduled to vote on increasing the preparation time for balls used in the kicking game. The 12 K-balls would be numbered, and officials would do their best to ensure the balls are used sequentially, with the No. 1-marked ball being kicked with as long as it's available.
"They need to do something with those balls, so that the guys handling them -- the punters, the snappers, the holders -- at least have a chance," said Seahawks special teams coach Bruce DeHaven, who was with the Cowboys the past four seasons. "If they don't get those balls worked right initially, you can squeeze them and they pop right out of your hand."
The NFL introduced K-balls in 1999 after the competition committee decided specialists were doctoring balls for additional height and distance. Now, 12 balls marked with a "K" are delivered from the manufacturer, Wilson Sporting Goods, to officials the night before a game.
Two hours before kickoff, a representative from each team -- usually an equipment manager -- is allowed to rub down the K-balls. In the past, the allotted time was 20 minutes, which Cowboys kicker Martin Gramatica said Wednesday isn't enough time to get more than half of the balls worked in properly.
Conspiracy theorists believe the Seahawks' ball boys intentionally gave the Cowboys a slick, unused ball, leading to Romo's botched hold. It denied Gramatica a chance for a 19-yard field goal that would have given the Cowboys a 23-21 lead with 1:14 remaining.
McKay said other plays last season contributed to the proposal. In Week 16, Bengals long snapper Brad St. Louis botched a snap on an extra-point attempt late in Cincinnati's 24-23 loss to Denver.
"But do you think we'd even be talking about this if that [Romo play in Seattle] hadn't happened?" Cowboys punter Mat McBriar asked rhetorically Wednesday. "It's a weird thing, and I don't want to say that Seattle had any intention of doing anything [illegal]. I don't think they tampered with the balls.
"But, normally, only a handful of the allotted balls are used, and, come the fourth quarter, all the balls have been kicked or worked in a little bit by then, and to see a slick ball like that, that was disappointing. You don't expect brand-new balls in the fourth quarter."