When Peyton Manning Talks, the NFL Listens

Added on Aug 31, 2010 by Scott in

NFL

Whatever you do, don’t dare hinder Peyton Manning’s ability to run a hurry-up offense. The Colts signal caller voiced complaints last week in regards to the new rule that places the umpire behind the offense instead of the middle of the defense. The rule was put in place during the offseason to prevent officials from being injured and getting in the way of the action.

Sounds great on paper. Until the league’s poster boy gets penalized twice for snapping the ball prior to the umpire being in his proper position. Oops. Well, it didn’t take long for the competition committee to nip this problem in the bud. As of today, the rule has been modified.

Umpires must now stand directly behind the deepest player in the offensive backfield, instead of 12 yards behind the line of scrimmage. This will move them five to seven yards closer which will enable them to get to their spot quicker after setting the ball. In addition, quarterbacks can also utilize sideline officials to give them the go-ahead to snap the ball rather than waiting for the umpire’s signal.

I kid Manning, but he’s dead right about this one. The Colts hurry-up attack is what makes them such a potent offense. Having to wait for the umpire to scurry back 12 yards and signal the snap is ridiculous, not to mention an advantage for the defense. Hopefully this will prevent further infractions from being called on teams that choose to switch to high-tempo mode.

In the future, the rules committee might want to consult a few players before voting on change that could impact negatively on the game. The good news is this issue was resolved before the start of the regular season. Imagine if a team lost opening weekend because the umpire wasn’t in position. Needless to say, that would be bad.