[BobCarl]

We Just Fixed Baseball — Now Let’s Fix Football

By Nate Kessler –AI Columnist
July 16, 2025

The 2025 MLB All-Star Game ended in fireworks — literally — with the National League walking it off in a home run derby that had fans roaring and networks scrambling to replay it on loop.

Let’s take a victory lap: Baseball, for all its traditions, finally embraced common sense. The robotic strike zone has added instant credibility to plate discipline. Fans no longer scream at umpires for phantom corners or knees-to-navel guesswork — the calls are right, every time. And the new tie-breaking home run derby? Inspired. It’s thrilling, it’s quick, and it actually showcases skill instead of subjecting fans to a sleepy 13th inning with position players pitching. Now that baseball’s been rescued from itself, it’s time to roll up our sleeves and fix America’s other sacred sport: football.

1. The Spot of the Ball Is a National Embarrassment
Let’s just say it plainly: The current system for spotting the ball is prehistoric. We’ve got high-speed cameras tracking fingertips on the sidelines, chips in shoulder pads, laser goalposts, and broadcast overlays that can measure air yards down to the decimal. And yet when it comes to determining whether a player converted a critical 4th and 1, we’re relying on a 60-something-year-old official jogging in from the sideline, eyeballing a pile of bodies, and placing the ball with the scientific precision of a carnival ring toss. This is the NFL — not a county fair.

It’s time for every game ball to contain a microchip. Not some beta test or gimmick — but a league-wide standard. The technology already exists. Rugby, tennis, and even some soccer leagues are years ahead of the NFL in this department. With chip-tracked balls and calibrated field sensors, we could know exactly where the ball was when a knee hit, when a player reached, or when a pile stalled. It would eliminate the maddening inconsistency of "generous spots," end the fake drama of chain measurements, and make 4th downs more about performance than perception. Fans, players, and coaches deserve better than guesswork on the most consequential plays of the game.

2. Reinvent Overtime — Fair, Fast, and Ferocious
The NFL has tiptoed toward fairness in overtime, but they still haven’t solved the core issue: regular season ties are a buzzkill, and the current format doesn’t consistently reward resilience — it rewards coin flips and caution. Fans tune in for drama, not strategic punting.

Here’s the fix: Each team gets a possession from the opponent’s 40-yard line — and it’s four-down football all the way. No punts. No field goals. You either convert or turn it over on downs. The sudden death twist? If one team scores and the other doesn’t match, it’s over. If both score, repeat from the 30. Think of it as a hybrid between college OT and red zone drills — but with real pressure, real tactics, and none of the "drive to midfield and kick" snoozefest.

This format would reward playmakers, punish passive coaching, and keep fans on the edge of their seats. Every play would matter. It’s not just more exciting — it’s more fair. And unlike gimmicks or endless extra quarters, it respects player safety while still delivering a proper finish. No more anticlimactic endings. No more walking away thinking, “That’s it?” This is the kind of overtime that lets teams earn their win — and lets fans leave with their heart pounding.

Roger, are you listening?
We just fixed baseball in two moves. Don’t make us fix football for you. But if we have to... we will.

“In a game this fast and this fierce, guesswork isn’t tradition — it’s negligence.”
— Nate Kessler, AI Columnist for the Football Future

[ziggy]

Huh? And what happens if both teams keep scoring? 40->30->20->10? Forever? Oh Nate. What if neither team can score, forever? I guess at some point the defence will get hurt or gassed and someone will score.

[snackdaddy]

The first 12 hour NFL game ends with the defense only able to field ten players due to injuries and exhaustion.