CFL announces changes to the game - merged topics

[Tecno]

"Here's what else shortening the field has the potential to do: increase revenue for teams that need it. Whether it's a premium experience field-level, like Seattle and Los Angeles have, or making it a beer garden, social space that make coming to stadiums more appealing. Especially for the crowd that wants to post being seen on their social channels."

Ah, besides wanting to become 100% NFL-Lite by '29, this is the next "real" reason for the EZ/field shortening.  Social influencer pandering.  Get the 22 y.o. "pretty" girls (and boys) with their phones on selfie sticks in that EZ premium area showing TDs coming their way and players sipping their mojitos.  Heck, CFL will probably pay THEM to sit there, instead of the other way around.  (Who cares about the plebe fans -- you still get to pay $65 to sit in the nosebleeds.)

But you know what, out of all the hair-brained half-cocked ideas they announced today, this one actually might work to get "the kids" (teens/20s) out to games.  Because they do love their "influencers", and many try to emulate them as much as possible.  If by some miracle they can make the CFL "cool" then it could just work.

(That said, TOR has had that on-field seating, arguably better because it spanned the field so you could get a good 55YL seat instead of near EZ, and those seats were always more than half empty, and never seemed to have any pretty 21yo influencers in them!)

[Tecno]

"No further major changes are planned. However, the primary updates will lead to cascading rule adjustments — such as the placement of converts and kickoff locations. These refinements to the rulebook will be addressed through the standard offseason process led by the CFL Rules Committee"

Oh, rules-committee-member MOS is just SO looking forward to that process!  /s

Is this the year MOS quits the rules committee?  If he hates all of this crap (as my gut says he does), is this the year he retires and says "bleep it!"?  Like he wants to rethink his ENTIRE football modus operandi at this point in his career...

[Tecno]

Thanks to riderfan #1Fan, shamelessly stolen to enlighten us B&G fans

Bottom 2 pics (which are identical) are the new CFL field, top 2 pics are old CFL and current NFL fields.

Just to give you a feel for the relative sizes/changes.

[BlueInCgy]

Message to Stewart Johnston.  Don't fool yourself into thinking the fans are cheering "Stu" the next time you walk on the field.  It might rhyme with that though.

[Jesse]

Most of the media are toeing the line. They're giving airspace to the former American players who like the changes.

You have to follow the former Canadian players to get their opinions.

Peter Dyakowski:

For now. They gutted everything they could outside of bargaining. Anything that didn't require player approval for health & safety/CBA reasons. They will come for the rest when the CBA expires. These are the first (and major) steps towards full convergence with NFL rules.

[Tecno]

Peter Dyakowski:

That's a name I haven't heard in a while.  Good for him for standing up.  And a great point about not going "Full Rider" (can't say what I want to here) until the CBA is up, because then they really would see a revolt.

Oooh, I'm soooo itching to see what MOS really thinks about all of this... Alas, outside of his wife(?) and close PAS circle we shall never know.

[Tecno]

Paragraph 1:

At last, the Canadian Football League is getting out of the dark ages and modernizing a product that, while at its peak can be a beautiful thing to watch, has so many archaic, nonsensical idiosyncrasies that it affected how the game is played and presented

Barely started and he's already insulted many (most?) fans with ageism.  You like the CFL now?  Well, you're in the dark ages and are archaic.

The layout and rules you like?  Well, they're nothing but nonsensical idiosyncrasies.  Nonsensical!  Idiosyncrasies I can live with.  But insulting major defining aspects of our cherished game as nonsensical?

What he's really saying: Get with the (NFL) times you luddite!  I know better than you and you better not dare challenge these changes.

So condescending.  If you're hoping to change reluctant minds, bullying them is not the correct way.  Sure, it works on the weak, but it makes the strong only take up the resistance gauntlet.  What editor allowed him to publish such garbage?

[Tecno]

P2: There is a 'finally' element to this. Finally, the end zone will be less of its own postal code.

As I said on another thread, many people who played/know the American game come up here and have commented (on TSN, pressers, web reports) on how much easier it is to get TDs in the red zone in the CFL, and how much nicer it is to have the extra space to work with and draw up more complex plays.  They comment on the massive amount of EZ space compared to the dinky miniscule packed-with-players NFL EZ.  They directly contradict his imagined insult that ours is too big.

P2: Finally, the entirety of the end zone will legitimately be in play for touchdowns.

This doesn't even make sense.  There are no-go zones in our EZ we're not aware of right now?  Balls haven't been thrown or run to every square inch back there?  There's some magic corner that there be football-eating dragons?

Making it smaller will give players, callers, schemers more room to get more TDs?  Exactly how?  Did anyone consult with all of the people who have said the direct opposite over the years?

P2: Finally, you will not be rewarded with a point for blasting a field goal or punt through the end zone.

The presentation of this point is semi-acceptable, my only gripe being with the word "rewarded".  In nearly every punting situation getting the rouge is not a reward.  In most cases the punter will make a grimace and Suitor will explain how "he didn't want to do that".  Does Madani even watch CFL games?  Can someone explain to him what a coffin corner is?

As for a "reward" for a missed FG: this is nothing more than a long-standing and often-cherished rule that makes us different from the NFL.  There is nothing inherently good or bad: it's just different.  The NFL could have just as easily adopted our rouge rule, just like they've adopted other CFLisms over the years.

P2: Finally, the league will look more professional with teams on opposite sidelines — and with it, finally you won't have substitutions that require 300-pound linemen to run 70 yards just to get into the huddle pre-snap.

The only new thing today that I fully agree with, and have been screaming about since TOR/OTT built their new stadiums with this setup.  And I'm betting Madani only threw that in there to do the ol' Trojan Horse.  Use the one good thing (best thing) to make all the remaining crap more palatable.  "Well, that sideline idea is great so I'll listen to all this other tripe; maybe they do know what they're doing."

[bomb squad]

What you're saying is the 35s clock can be running while the game clock is not?  Yes, that's what would have to happen to keep our 3-min endings at least somewhat similar to now.  I'm pretty sure there are no times in current CFL or NFL where that can occur -- play clock running and game clock not?

If they ruin our amazing last-3-mins game by turning it into the NFL joke nonsense then they are going to miff basically EVERY real fan.  Even SB&G will hate that change.

In the CFL, how about in the last 3 mins when the clock doesn't start until the snap of the ball (after an incompletion or out of bounds)? So, yes there is a time when the play clock runs and the game clock doesn't.

I believe the same thing happens in the NFL after the 2 minute warning or a time out.

Like I said before, if they don't separate the game clock from the play clock in the last 3 mins., similar to the way they do now, then the 35 sec rule absolutely stinks.

Of all the rule changes, the timing rule has the most questions and issues surrounding it.

[Tecno]

P3: Finally, Toronto and Montreal's stadiums won't have their end zones cut off for space.

Without rebuilding whole new stadiums for those outliers we made the best of the situation.  We are a "budget" league without a $billions revenue stream like the NFL.  No one liked the MTL setup, especially, nor the TOR "turf change" issue (blame soccer), but basically no one cared about the slightly smaller TOR EZ issue.

They could have solved both problems by making the EZs 3 or 5Y smaller OR the 100-yard field change.  They did not have to do both.  Nearly everyone who has mentioned this has said the slightly smaller EZ is the better choice, because just like no one notices TOR is 3Y smaller, people would hardly notice all EZs being 3 or 5Y shallower.

So, another trojan horse: "Muh MTL track oval ---> der derp 100-yard field AND 15Y EZ's duh derp".  If the track was the problem, just solve that problem, don't use it as an excuse to go all NFL on us.  If you want to go all NFL on us, just say you want to go all NFL on us!  Oh, that might lead to "consumer resistance" and fan revolt you say?  Nah, better to just lie to our faces!

P2: Finally, there will be consistency with a play clock that has been too random for too long, since the referee arbitrarily decides when the 20-second timer should begin.

No he doesn't.  He's not a 2005 MLB pitcher holding the whole game up because he likes to stare down the 1st base runner for 10 minutes each pitch.  The CFL ref has a set procedure he has to follow, with set timing guidelines (yes, not clock enforced, but likely graded post facto).  The good ones probably follow this with due haste.

In another thread I mentioned the idea of a soft-clock, whether shown on-field, or internal to the refs headsets, or something.  The refs & teams could work to the soft clock to know the expectations and adjust accordingly.  This would allow the normal clock/timing rules to remain as they were.  Such a change would upset NO ONE.  No one is saying we want a "slower game" on purpose.

In any event, if you're a butt-in-seat attendee at a CFL game, you aren't getting bored in the time it takes to position the ball and move the chains (except the 1-2 times a game they seem to take forever because EITS is intervening in the spot): NO, what you're getting bored with is the neverending stream of commercial interruptions with Mr Red Shirt Neon Flag.  THOSE last forever and are far too numerous.  But you aren't talking about that, eh Madani?

It's just a coincidence and funny that every single solution to the supposed "problems" aligns us with the NFL, eh?  Nothing to do with NFL North (TM).  Nothing to see here.  Relax guy.  Take a rest.  Look, flying squirrel!

[Tecno]

In the CFL, how about in the last 3 mins when the clock doesn't start until the snap of the ball (after an incompletion or out of bounds)? So, yes there is a time when the play clock runs and the game clock doesn't.

I believe the same thing happens in the NFL after the 2 minute warning or a time out.

Of all the rule changes, the timing rule has the most questions and issues surrounding it.

Great point.  I was thinking there must be an example, and you're exactly right.  So there IS hope then.  Would have been nice for Johnston to flesh this out in the presser.

Also a great point that the 35s change seems to be the biggest sticking point.

I'm going to add your input to the 35s thread.  Maybe we can flesh it out here to avoid undue worry by the fans.

[Sir Blue and Gold]

That last post just outlines one of the reasons for changing the clock rules.

Coaches game the current timing system through substitutions.

All the change does is give both teams a max of 35 second to get ready for the next play.  Many plays will be snapped earlier than that.

It's 100% a better system. Easier to understand for new fans (or in some cases in this thread for all fans, evidently). O'Shea is a master at exploiting the current timing rules but he's not alone.

And ya, it changes the ending strategy a bit, but again, NCAA, NFL, CFL and USports all have exciting endings to football games. The CFL does not own that universally as much as everyone wants to bang their first on the table and pretend they do.

[peg_city]

Doug Brown highlighted that this probably is the first step to full NFL rules. This is all they could do without going through the players' union. The next collective agreement will be NFL rules.

My guess is then merger with the UFL, which will result in us being a feeder league to the NFL.

[Tecno]

Great food for thought from Riderforum:

"Tinfoil hat says that after a couple of years, space on the sidelines for benches becomes an issue....what do you suppose the solution to that might be?"  --xnos

Stubblejumpers don't often post what you'd call Deep Thoughts (by Jack Handey), but this one is brilliantly prescient.  That's some 4D chess thinking, and I'm ashamed to say I didn't think of it first -- after all, I am the king of tinfoil (note to self: ramp up the paranoia).

Even more Hegelian.  Make the problem ("drat our sideline idea isn't working because the field is too wide"), "solve" the problem ("just gonna have to narrow the field playing area"), get what you wanted all along without tipping your hand.

I was wondering how the bench change would play out because I remember hearing about how they purposely built BMO/TD to put fans "closer to the action" with smaller sidelines.

Does anyone know any actual field dimensions for those stadiums for us to run the numbers?  What is the recommended/normal "bench area" width in the CFL right now?  What is the minimum you could get away with?  Would some stadiums still require that 4-5' lane for the camera cart to drive all game long?

If the math doesn't add up, xnos may very well be Nostradamus.

[Sir Blue and Gold]

https://3downnation.com/2025/09/22/opinion-the-cfl-finally-delivers-big-with-changes-that-will-make-the-game-pop/

How can they publish such tripe?  Who is this "Madani" clown?  How much did Johnston pay 3down under the table to be such "yes men"?

The arguments are, frankly, tired and brain dead.  So much fallacy, I'm falling over myself.  If no one at 3down gives a counter-article then the respect I had for down just went from a 2/10 to a -5/10.

If you think you don't have time to read it, here's the opening paragraph that only a SB&G could love:

At last, the Canadian Football League is getting out of the dark ages and modernizing a product that, while at its peak can be a beautiful thing to watch, has so many archaic, nonsensical idiosyncrasies that it affected how the game is played and presented.

I'm going to attack each fail in this article over the night as I find time, so as to not overwhelm.  Feel free to chime in on your take.

Just because his opinions aren't yours doesn't make him brain-dead. He actually offers a view into what a lot of non CFL fans think about the game. It's okay that they think that.

The CFL does do a lot of weird stuff compared to how the game is much more widely understood in the US (and increasingly in Canada too).

The good news is all the purists get to decide if it's still worth your time or not. Lots of big words over the years. Many on this forum when some of us tried to explain the writing on the wall. Lots of outrage over a 35 second clock.

Here's your chance...