NFL Overtime Rules for Playoffs

In the National Football League (NFL) overtime occurs when the score of a game is tied after the completion of regulation time, which consists of four 15-minute quarters. New rules for overtime in playoff games were established by league vote March 23, 2010.

  1. Old Playoff Overtime Rules

    • Before the 2010 rule change, NFL postseason overtime rules were constructed in a "sudden death" format. There was a coin toss at the beginning of a fifth 15 minute period to determine possession of the ball. The first team to score--including a field goal--won the game.

    New Playoff Overtime Rules

    • Under new NFL overtime rules, a coin toss still determines which team gets possession of the ball first in the overtime period. However, if a team scores only a field goal on the ensuing possession, the opposing team has the opportunity to possess the ball. Thus "sudden death" applies only to touchdowns, not field goals. If the score is still tied after 15 minutes, play continues until a score is made and a winner is determined.

    Purpose

    • The genesis of the new overtime rules is to make the overtime period less dependent on the coin flip. Statistics indicate that beginning in 1994, the team that won the coin toss had won overtime games 59.8 percent of the time. The spirit of the new rule is to promote fairness and level competition in playoff games less dictated by chance and more on what occurs on the field of play.

    Controversy

    • A sizable contingent of media analysts, reporters, owners, coaches and players believe that the new overtime rules also should be implemented during regular-season contests. As of June 2010, a team that wins the coin toss in a regular-season game and then kicks a field goal wins the game. Furthermore, if a game is still tied at the end of one 15 minute overtime period, it is considered a tie.