Sports rule changes you want to see

[ervinsm84]

Originally Posted by Yachtzee

Another idea I think would be good would be useful in World Cup play to discourage cynical play by giving teams that have accumulated a certain number of yellows a "general yellow card," whereby the next player who commits a yellow card worthy foul automatically gets a red card, regardless of whether they have a prior yellow. While it seems like the various pro leagues have been working to cut down on negative play, it still abounds in the World Cup.

I like this idea a lot, and it wouldn't be that hard to implement either. I really would like to see this in every regular soccer game.

[ervinsm84]

Originally Posted by improbus

But, if the QB goes deep what is the deterrent from the defender just destroying the receiver? I don't like the spot foul rule, but I'm not sure how to get around it. If DB's started tackling wideouts 40 yards downfield consistently, is that good for the game? Maybe you have a "Flagrant Pass Interference" which is a spot foul. But...I don't like forcing refs to make more judgment calls.

I'd like there to be a difference between PI's almost up to the official. Maybe have it to where the common PI is only 10 yard auto, but if there is a an egregious act like you suggested and enforce it like the break-away/clear path rule in the nba when a foul is committed before a fast break. However, for the egregious PI, I think the penalty should be more than a spot foul to discourage guys from just grabbing people from behind when toasted. Make it a spot foul + 10-15 yards, otherwise there's really no jeopardy for DBS to just grab someone when they're toasted

[improbus]

Originally Posted by paintmered

Not sure that could be done with RFID. You would need to be able to resolve relative angle between multiple passive antennas (RFID only recognizes proximity) and adaptively move the transmitting antenna up down the pitch with the last defender. And then there's the problem of range, you need to do this at upwards 50 yards. GPS tracking might be a better option, but there's still too much variance in its positioning and isn't dynamic enough for the situation of determining offsides.

It's a tricky problem to solve with current techniques, but it's a fun one to ponder. With unlimited money, you could couple inertial sensors with a GPS receiver. But even then, the problem requires an accuracy of 2-3". Not even that setup can provide that kind of accuracy over 45 minutes.

The England vs. Belgium game in June will feature the Hawkeye system used at Wimbledon. That system is fast and has become a hit at Wimbledon. Imagine the crowd at a Derby cheering as the system shows a potential goal or no goal. It would be really fun.

[improbus]

This one isn't a rule change, but more of a game day experience change. Why hasn't any team (that I know of) used the Tecmo Bowl "First Down" sound followed by the music? If I heard that at a game, I would lose my mind.

As a side note, I did hear that a player comes out to the plate to the RBI Baseball theme.

[OldRightHander]

Not an in game rule change necessarily, but I'd make the MLB draft international.

Get rid of the instigator rule in hockey.

Free relief out of fairway divots.

What happened to the technical foul for hanging on the rim? Does that get called anymore?

[RiverRat13]

Just a couple of years ago I laughed at the idea as foolish, but now I agree with Mark Cuban in that it is time to outlaw help defenders from taking charges.

- It would instantly bring more scoring to all levels.
- It is the hardest call to get right for officials.
- Flopping is out of control on all levels.
- It would increase the value of big men (i.e. shot blocking) after decades of rules trying to limit their influence has now turned basketball into a guard's game.

[Outrider]

Allow hockey to go back to clearing the benches. On the surface it looked brutal. However allowing an enforcer to beat the crap out of someone going after a star like Gretzky or Crosby actually lowered the rate of injuries sustained.

[reds1869]

Originally Posted by Outrider

Allow hockey to go back to clearing the benches. On the surface it looked brutal. However allowing an enforcer to beat the crap out of someone going after a star like Gretzky or Crosby actually lowered the rate of injuries sustained.

There is a lot of validity to your idea. Under current rules the potential reward for a cheap shot outweighs the potential penalty.

[Outrider]

On both the Oilers and Kings Gretzky never got a serious dirty hit from anyone because Marty McSorley would pound them into pulp for it.

[Outrider]

Originally Posted by RiverRat13

Just a couple of years ago I laughed at the idea as foolish, but now I agree with Mark Cuban in that it is time to outlaw help defenders from taking charges.

- It would instantly bring more scoring to all levels.
- It is the hardest call to get right for officials.
- Flopping is out of control on all levels.
- It would increase the value of big men (i.e. shot blocking) after decades of rules trying to limit their influence has now turned basketball into a guard's game.

I wouldn't mind this. It would eventually stop the defender from just standing in the way of a charge anyway. I also like eliminating foul outs and instead award multiple free throws for fouls.

Or better yet, red card the guy! When a player fouls out, don't allow him to be replaced!

[cumberlandreds]

Originally Posted by OldRightHander

What happened to the technical foul for hanging on the rim? Does that get called anymore?

It does, but not much. Anthony Davis had a couple this past season at UK. Quite honestly this is one they could get rid of. Unless the guy is doing it to show up someone then it's a useless technical. Back when dunking was first allowed in college basktball in the mid 70's the refs would call this nearly every game to the point of it being inane. Most of the time the player barely grasped the rim and it would be called.

[improbus]

I would love to see less timeouts in basketball. They need to do anything to speed up the end of games and let the natural flow of basketball take over.

BTW, im for any change that minimalizes the impact of coaches on in game action (like they do in soccer). Coaches have too much power to influence the flow of a game by direct intervention. If the players want to stop play, let them, but I hate that coaches have an official role in games.

[Todd Gack]

Originally Posted by improbus

Basketball and Football: Coaches shouldn't be able to call timeouts. I don't think they should have any official part in the game, because they are not actually playing the game.

Football:
1) Eliminate the illegal motion rules, who cares.
2) Eliminate the 6 men on the line of scrimmage rule.
3) Put a bar across the top of the goal posts to force kickers to kick it lower, making closer field goals a riskier choice.
4) Eliminate the eligibility rules for catching passes. If a Left guard can catch it, let him.

1) You must be an Arena league fan?
2) Why?
3) See #1.
4) See #1 and the A-11 offense.

If anything, the NFL needs to get rid of the BS 'illegal contact' penalties.

[improbus]

Originally Posted by Todd Gack

1) You must be an Arena league fan?
2) Why?
3) See #1.
4) See #1 and the A-11 offense.

If anything, the NFL needs to get rid of the BS 'illegal contact' penalties.

The rules of football remind me of Napoleonic wars. We're wearing Red coats, you're wearing Blue coats. We will line up on one side and shoot at you if you line up on the other side and shoot at us. Got it, good.

Are defenses not sophisticated enough to handle seeing multiple men in motion? Why do you need 6 men on the line of scrimmage? What a fundamentally strange and arbitrary rule? If you don't have 6 men on the line (which essentially means that one WR need to pay attention and take one step forward), do you get a five yard penalty and are haunted by the ghost of Woody Hayes?

I want to see creativity in the game, and the rules of football are designed to stop creativity at every turn.

[Chip R]

What I don't like is when - and this happens more in the NBA than in college - a shooter goes up for a shot and purposely sticks his leg or whatever into a defender to draw a foul. Kobe does this all the time and Durant did it in the last seconds of Game 2 the other night but didn't draw the foul. The player who initiates contact should be the one who gets the foul called on him. That may how it is written in the rule book but they sure don't call it like that.