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HOENIX (March 24, 2003) -- NFL owners will spend the next day or so at their annual meeting wrestling with a couple of intriguing, and complex, issues: Whether to expand the number of teams in the playoffs and the number of possessions in overtime.
There are some significant differences of opinion.
Those in favor of expanding the playoffs from 12 to 14 teams (and there is even a proposal to grow it to 16) cite rabid fan interest in the postseason as the top reason for such a move. With more clubs alive for wild-card spots late in the year, teams would play more meaningful games at the end of the season, and television audiences would grow even larger for them as well as for the playoffs, when TV ratings are at their highest.
There are some significant differences of opinion.
Those in favor of expanding the playoffs from 12 to 14 teams (and there is even a proposal to grow it to 16) cite rabid fan interest in the postseason as the top reason for such a move. With more clubs alive for wild-card spots late in the year, teams would play more meaningful games at the end of the season, and television audiences would grow even larger for them as well as for the playoffs, when TV ratings are at their highest.
