Author: Jeremy Snyder

[2010 note: these rules no longer apply after the changes made in the offseason.]Regular season games are limited to one 15-minute overtime period, as the Eagles found out in Week 11. But what happens if a playoff game is tied after 15 minutes of overtime?The relevant text: Rule 16,

No major sport has more rules than American football. And no other sport has as many games turn on obscure rules and (mis)interpretations.Yet the NFL, unlike almost all other leagues, doesn't make its full rulebook freely available to the general public. (What's on the NFL.com website under "Rulebook"

Missed fair catch kick (and long field goal): Mason Crosby, just short from 69 yards at the end of the first half.Low number of pass attempts: The Patriots had only 8 pass attempts in ridiculously windy conditions in Buffalo.

New York Times, 12/4/1950

The Cincinnati Bengals attempted only 9 passes in last week's game against the Browns. This is only the 14th time since passing rules were liberalized in 1978 that an NFL team has attempted fewer than 10 passes in a game. Needless to say, most of these games were

Notes and assumptions:No possibility of ties. PHI is ignored in these tiebreakers for that reason.However, if PHI does tie again, their two ties on the season would equal one win and one loss. An 8-6-2 record is equivalent to 9-7.Tiebreakers that don't affect playoff berths or seeding are ignored.Divisional

Notes and assumptions:No possibility of ties.Tiebreakers that don't affect playoff berths or seeding are ignored.Divisional ties are broken first. To break a tie between NYJ, MIA, and BAL, first break the tie between NYJ and MIA.The AFC #6 seed will have at least a 10-6 record.Locked berths: TEN #1,