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NFL owners approve overtime, replay assist, kickoff rules changes

NFL owners approve overtime, replay assist, kickoff rules changes

NFL team owners enacted several rule changes on Tuesday at their meetings, which will impact the 2025-26 season.

Here's the rundown of what changed, what remained the same, and what has been tabled.

The Philadelphia Eagles' favorite scoring play saw 16 owners willing to vote against it continuing. The league needed 24 for it to be banned.

One of the more notable rule changes that passed; the update will give both teams a chance to have the ball in regular-season overtime sessions.

However, that period will remain at 10 minutes as opposed to bumping to 15, which some sought.

What won't change, for now, is the onside kick rules. The vote on changing the rules—which saw teams only to be able to use the strategy in the fourth quarter if they were losing—will occur in May.

There will be usage of Sony's Hawk-Eye technology to determine first downs. This has worked well for a long time in tennis, and will eliminate the chain gang and speed up the process.

Replay assist will be a bigger part of the game. The on-site replay official will be permitted to reverse penalty flags thrown for hits to defenseless players, as well as fouls for facemask, horsecollar, tripping, and running into/roughing the kicker.