A couple of days ago, reports emerged that NFL Competition Committee Chairman Rich McKay was concerned by the considerable dip in scoring over the years. As per the data, the scoring rate has nosedived from 49 points per game in 2020 to 43.54 games in 2023. It’s no secret that more points means more entertainment. The higher the entertainment value of the game, the more people will tune in and thus more revenue.
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Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson, in the latest episode of the Nightcap Show, discussed these reports and had very strong opinions against them. Shannon started by stating the obvious, that the league is concerned because of the dip in revenue that this statistic poses and not the fact that the rules are favoring the defense. Chad Johnson, who was hilariously on the podcast today with his baby in his arms, went on a rant about why this concern is useless.
Ocho pointed out that the dip in scoring is present even after the NFL took away major advantages from the defense. The former WR shed light on how the game has gone soft, with every single tackle being scrutinized deeply. He argued that the game has become very offense-centric and this report shouldn’t prompt the league in making the game even more favorable to the offense. He argued that logically in the current offense-centric framework, there shouldn’t be a dip in scoring.
“It shouldn’t be a dipping scoring because you’re taking all the advantages away from the defense. It shouldn’t be a dipping scoring at all,” Johnson said. “You can’t do anything, you can’t hit anybody, DB’s that can’t jam anymore. Everything is offensive. You can’t hit the quarterback, you can’t touch the quarterback. I mean, there shouldn’t be a dip in scoring.”
Shannon agreed with Chad’s sentiments and then shifted the focus to the rumored changes that are making the rounds in the media to increase the scoring rate of the league.
Shannon Sharpe and Ocho on Kickoff Rule Proposal
The scoring rate dipping at an alarmingly fast rate is a huge threat to the revenue generation prowess of the NFL. A 6 point dip in 3 years is massive and thus rumors in the media suggest that the league must be making changes in rules soon to do something about it. Shannon Sharpe, after Chad’s rant, brought up the proposed Kickoff Rule, which mirrors the rules already followed by the XFL. Sharpe argued that it’s impossible to make the game of football less physical, no matter what the league decides to do with the rules. “I don’t understand how you make a dangerous play less dangerous,” opined Sharpe.
Chad agreed and further enforced Shannon’s points by shedding light on the field dimensions. Johnson argued that the field dimensions haven’t changed, but the physicality and explosiveness of the players have increased. Under these dynamics, the game is bound to increase its competitiveness no matter what. He also opined that you can’t play the game any less physically as it’s very hard to control the intensity and emotions on the field no matter what. The DBs are already so restrained that pushing them more would be overkill. He explained this with a metaphor of a speeding car.
“You can’t. All these safety rules, all this stuff, they putting in place that they’re trying to do, there’s no way. It’s impossible. The field dimensions of the field haven’t changed in years but the players have gotten bigger stronger and faster. There’s nothing you could do,” Chad said. “I don’t care how much safety you talk about and how many seminars you put on, how well the stuff that they make now are better for the players; if you drive a car 100 miles an hour into wall, no matter what you do, it’s still going to be total.”
