CFL announces changes to the game - merged topics

[Tecno]

They can fill the new endzone space with slot machines to generate extra revenue and add a bit of colour, distraction and background noise.  Provide seniors a free ducat to attend games, they can smoke, drink and gamble their pensions, while only having to dodge the occasional FG or bruiser that crashes through their fresh air casino.

LOL.  Maybe!  They'd have to make sure the Rum Hut delivers to your VLT though.

[Tecno]

Season ticket seats just got worse for most so they'll either have to be discounted appropriately, or risk forfeiting, neither of which is revenue positive.

True.  Fans looking for good views generally measure seats by "within the 30s" or whatever number they find acceptable.  Your "within the 30s" seat just turned into a "within the 25s" seat.

And EZ/corner people are now 10Y farther away from any action at all.  Say goodbye to any hope of the Hardrick Hop returning to PAS (yes, with a new player, I know -- call it the Vanterpool Vault).

[Tecno]

How did I not answer.  Shortening the field:

Makes a regulation field fit in TOR and MTL

As many have said, this is not a real talking point because they could have done that by making the EZs 17 or 18.  They didn't need to go to 15 (or the inevitable 10).  Saying "muh TOR and MTL" is at best a misdirection and deflection; and at worst a lie.

[Tecno]

Punts from inside of center field will also increase, and I suspect if the OOB limit stays as is, you'll see the punting strategy being to punt OOB in the air for the opponents 40 plus.

None of the above makes the game more exciting in my opinion.

Good point.  They have stated they want to decrease FGs because it's "boring".  They think the changes will make teams go for it (more TDs) instead.  What if teams just end up punting even more!

IOW, they aren't trading FGs for TDs, but FGs for punts.  And while I like punts, most would say they are the most boring play in the CFL, and most people complain when a game turns into a punt-fest.

I can see situations where teams are punting in 3rd & medium (or even short) at the opponent's 35 YL!  Something unheard of in the current CFL.  Good punters may have to be able to hit the coffin with only 25-30Y of air space!  Crazy obtuse-angled punts to the field side might become the norm.  Might actually make it easier to hit the coffin corner.  Might result in a ton more pinned series-starts, which will definitely not "increase scoring".

[Tecno]

Miller was... and agreed wholeheartedly.

Or was coerced.  And him publicly loving the changes doesn't negate that possibility.  They could say "WM endorse these changes or your HAVE team will be paying a lot more money to the HAVE NOT teams next season".

I can easily see the big, huge money, billionaire owners that want massive change forcing their will upon lowly community-owned WFC/WM.

[Tecno]

They will move the KO back 10-15 yards.  They already did that recently to increase returns.

Pretty soon they'll be kicking off from behind the goal line!  Just to get "more O".

[Tecno]

I would push back on there being some over-arching evil plan that is 100% being rolled out over x amount of time. That's not how strategic choices are typically made.

I wouldn't.  Too much of this occurring in normal life the last 25 years.  Not a stretch to think the ultimate owners like Disney aren't fulfilling some long term vision.  They've been drip-dripping stuff into the CFL for at least 15 years now.

I'd say it's (at least) equally as likely as this is all benign with the only planned goal being to "increase TDs".  You can't say, and I can't say, but we will certainly find out.  Problem is, when the CFL is NFL in 5 years, no one will remember this conversation and people will still think "slippery slope" is a fallacy.  Rinse, and repeat.

[Tecno]

Gotta wonder how much influence (if any) TSN had in this decision and if Johnston was installed (from TSN) to execute it.

Bingo.  I knew I smelled trouble when he was installed.  His sophistry and smarmy style the last couple of days basically proves it.

[Tecno]

Which USports stadium will host an NFL preseason game?  I don't see your point.

Uh, us?  It's been stated publicly that these changes leading to NFL PS games is one of the side-quest goals.

And I have no idea why you can't see that chalking (or painting) new lines INSIDE any sewn lines is a no brainer.

Once again, Commish and SSK said that the NEW DIMENIONS, which are "INSIDE any sewn lines" will REQUIRE new $1.5M turf.  For 2-3 stadiums.  And if they shrink it again (10Y EZ) after they install these new turfs (if they use sewn-in again), then the same REQUIREMENT will hold true then.

There is no "just chalk it over".  I'm not sure how else I can word this for you.

These changes have guaranteed a massive cost for 2-3 teams.  Doubly as bad because SSK just installed a new turf!  Can you imagine if this was WFC with their just-installed turf?  Wow.

[gobombersgo]

Thought the new turf at Mosiac was paint.

[Tecno]

Thought the new turf at Mosiac was paint.

Ya, sorry.  It looks like it's CGY that just got new turf, not SSK.  And CGY did NOT sew in the lines.  So no one will have to replace brand new turf in '27.  Sounds like MTL & SSK will have to replace sewn-in turf but word is both are overdue for new turf anyhow.  If I got anything wrong, let me know.

But it still means at least 2 teams will have to buy new turf for '27, whether they wanted to do it that year or not.

And I doubt anyone will ever sew-in lines again, because we've gone from a "never changes dimensions" league to "we'll change them on a whim" league.  And everyone knows the 10Y EZ, and probably narrower field, are coming in later years.

[Tecno]

How tall is the crossbar?  Can our tallest/jumpiest/wingiest player get his hands above that point?  By how much?

Could the new post placement allow teams to put the max-air guy back at the post to block super-long FG attempts as they come just a couple feet above the crossbar?  Is that even legal?

I suppose you wouldn't have spared a guy to go for that longshot batdown in the past, because you already had a guy back to return.  But now you don't need a returner, so why not put Willie J back there to try to bat one down?  And if they need a returner after all, he's already back there to field it...

[Tecno]

If they don't add contingencies to protect the final 3 mins from the new 35s rule, then are they really just trading end-of-half/game excitement for all-other-times excitement?

And what do fans like more?  Is it better to have a slowish game building to a big wild ending, like we have now?  Or have the pacing and (more) scoring more spread out over a whole game, with the final 3 mins nothing special at all?

Johnston did explicitly say (verbally) he (paraphrasing) hates final 3 mins that take "half an hour".  If that's his big bugbear (which I find to be a strange one), then I would take that as a hint that there will be NO mitigations to save the final 3 mins.  He doesn't want 4 possessions and 2 lead changes anymore: he wants it to roll out and end quickly like the NFL usually does.  But in fact quicker, because the NFL has the zillion timeouts, which we probably won't get.

[Tecno]

Zach in his Sep 23 presser kind of carefully toes the line.  He does repeat the Commish talking point that: the things that define the Canadian game are still there blah blah 12 men, wide field, 3 downs, 1 yard off, yada yada.

We hear that from every pro-NFL-change poster, as they follow the lead of the Commish for their talking points.

QUESTION: If I asked you 3 days ago what "defines the Canadian game", the "untouchable" things for you, would you have included "55 yard line" in your list?  Be honest.  I know I sure would have, no doubt about it.  In fact, I probably would have listed 55YL as most-defining right after 3 downs, and before the 12 men and 1 yard.

And if one is really honest with themselves, and agree that ya, they would have said 110YL is a top defining feature, then why today, after they know they lost it, are they leaving it out of their "defines the CFL" "can't live without it" list?

Realize you're being set up to have another one of your (dwindling) Canadian-game-defining lines in the sand taken away the next time they announce (yet more) changes.  Are you going to let them gaslight you then into thinking and saying that other aspect you claim to be critical now is suddenly not important to you?

[Tecno]

Everyone watch the MOS presser Sep 23 in the Video Links thread.  Great stuff.  MOS clearly is more aligned with Rourke, but has to be way more diplomatic about it.  But he does come right out and express disappointment with losing Canadian aspects of the game, saying he isn't fond of most of the changes.

I'm glad he said even what he did.  All these guys are in tight spots with regards to avoiding trouble for disparaging the league.  He also outright expresses support for Rourke's words.