The Detroit Lions proposed a few rule changes this year at the NFL annual owners meetings, including one about re-seeding the playoffs.
In the system the Lions proposed, playoff teams would be seeded based solely on record, rather than guaranteeing the top four spots in the bracket to divisional winners. That proposal ended up being tabled for the time being.
While the proposal was ultimately tabled this year without a vote, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell called it a "very healthy proposal" in his press conference on Tuesday, indicating that it’s very possible the rule is re-examined in the near future.
“There's great data to show that we should really look at some form of this," Goodell said, via The Athletic's Colton Pouncy.
The Lions originally came up with this proposal based on how the NFC's playoff seeding turned out this past season, when the Minnesota Vikings fell to the fifth seed despite having the second-best record in the NFC.
They ended up playing a road game in the wild-card round. Lions general manager Brad Holmes also said on Monday how teams that win their division at below .500 should maybe not host a home playoff game if there's teams that have better records than them.
If the proposal does pass at some point, which is certainly possible if Goodell is in favor of it, then the NFL would see a significant shift in how the postseason is laid out. But, for now, that change won't be happening—at least not yet.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Roger Goodell Appears to Be Intrigued by Lions' Proposed NFL Playoff Seeding Rule Change.
