With AAF dismantling before the full season had been played, an increasing doubt in football fans has grown about whether the XFL, which is set to debut next February, will provide a well rounded enough product to stick around for (at least) a few seasons.
XFL commissioner Oliver Luck shared a few compelling nuggets on PFT PM that definitely make giving the league a honest shot.
For example, after touchdowns teams will have the option to play a down from the 2-yard line for one point, a play from the 5-yard line for a chance at two points, or a three-point opportunity from the 10-yard line. Now those 9-point games that would normally be two-possession games are suddenly one-possession games in the XFL, which will make for some interesting finishes and new strategies for coaches.
The other interesting change that caught my attention was their approach to overtime, which host Mike Florio talks about excitedly around the 21:50 mark.
The idea is to have Team A's offense on one end of the field vs. Team B's defense, and then Team B's offense ready on the other end of the field vs. Team A's defense. 11+11+11+11=44. Scores by offenses will result in 2-points. In addition to making a whole lot of sense, it's also very efficient time-wise which was very appealing to Luck and decision makers.
"We think it makes a lot of sense. We think it is very fair, as you pointed out, and we also think that we can get these games under three hours. So then, if we do have overtime, and we hope we do because that indicates a close game, that overtime session can get done in four or five minutes, and that cannot happen with a full quarter like the NFL, or like the college system that can go on for six or seven overtimes."
"We plan on doing five opportunities each [team]. So back and forth, kind of like a ping-pong game, but we're also saying that the defense can score a point with a turnover."
The overall idea was actually shared a few years ago on PFT originally from the sounds of it, and is now coming to fruition.
Catch the full interview with Luck from PFT, where he talks about integrating double-forward passes and some other XFL planned wrinkles as well as the possibility of college guys leaving early for the league, in the video.