Indianapolis — All the Buffalo Bills wanted in January was one more chance to beat Kansas City.
Now they’re trying to make sure no NFL team begins the offseason as it did.
On Tuesday, more than a month after enduring a crushing AFC divisional round loss without ever touching the ball in overtime, Bills general manager Brandon Beane threw his support behind a proposal to change the league’s postseason rules.
“Ours is going to be more instead of one possession and then you get the other possession, is a time, similar to in basketball, you play five minutes,” Beane said.
“Baseball, both teams get the top half and the bottom half (of an inning). So a time limit, and I’m talking about postseason only. That way, both teams will definitely have a chance and maybe even more than one possession.”
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Beane acknowledged the league’s competition committee could field multiple proposals during this week’s meeting at the annual NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis, joking there could be one from all 32 teams. No decision is expected this week.
And it’s not just current Bills jumping on board.
Colts coach Frank Reich, the former quarterback who orchestrated the NFL’s greatest comeback during his tenure in Buffalo, also supports the move. Reich is a first-year committee member and is uncertain what that might include.
“It’s basically something that would guarantee each team a possession,” Reich said. “My opinion is that I think there’s a place for both teams to have a possession. But I can see both sides of it. You’ve got 60 minutes to win a game, so go win the game. Or play defense.”
The NFL last changed its overtime rules in 2010 after complaints the coin flip often determined the winner. Under the current system, if the opening possession of overtime results in a touchdown or a defensive score, the game ends. That’s what happened to Buffalo.
But if the opening possession results in a field goal, the opposing team gets a chance to tie the score or win the game. Those rules apply throughout the entire season.
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And now the Bills want every playoff team to get one last opportunity.
“I think, experiencing what we experienced overall, I think there’s a better way out there,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “We’ve got some ideas and I think they’ll help move the game forward. And we’ll see where it goes.”
Cowboys QB Prescott has surgery on non-throwing shoulder
Indianapolis — Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott had surgery on his non-throwing shoulder after the season, a procedure coach Mike McCarthy said was a clean up for an issue that isn’t a concern.
McCarthy told reporters at the scouting combine Tuesday he expects Prescott to be available for offseason work. The coach said he didn’t think the left shoulder bothered Prescott during the season.
“He practiced full out,” McCarthy said. “I think he just wanted to get it cleaned up.”
It was the third surgery in less than 18 months for Prescott. The first two surgeries were to repair the compound fracture and dislocation of Prescott’s right ankle in Week 5 of the 2020 season against the New York Giants.
Prescott also dealt with right shoulder and calf strains last year. The shoulder injury kept him out of team drills for most of training camp, while the calf strain sidelined him for two weeks, but just one game.
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The Cowboys had a 5-1 record and were cruising on offense when Prescott strained the calf in an overtime victory at New England. While the quarterback said the calf wasn’t an issue, his production wasn’t the same the rest of the season.
Dallas finished 12-5 before a 23-17 wild-card loss at home to San Francisco on another inconsistent day for Prescott and the offense.
Jaguars reverse course on EVP, stick with Pederson/Baalke
Jacksonville, Fla. — Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan reversed course on hiring an executive vice president Tuesday, leaving key football decisions to new coach Doug Pederson and general manager Trent Baalke moving forward.
Khan’s about-face came less than a month after he said he planned to tweak the franchise’s power structure to add “brainpower” to a “too flat organization.” Khan changed his mind after sitting in on staff meetings and witnessing a turnaround in terms of professionalism and chemistry.
“In just over three weeks, Doug Pederson has instilled a structured and disciplined approach that is clearly making a difference in our culture and mindset,” Khan said in a statement. “I feel we’re best served at this time by allowing Doug, Trent and their assistants to take ownership of our path forward.
“We will continue to explore the addition of personnel to other areas of our football operations to provide everyone the best chance to win.”
The EVP would have been in charge of day-to-day operations, a person who reports directly to Khan and has ultimate say in football decisions. Pederson and Baalke would have reported to the EVP. It’s a model the Jaguars first used with Tom Coughlin in 2017, the previous time they made the playoffs.
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Khan went with a coach-centric model last year, with Urban Meyer having the final say. Now, they’re likely to have Pederson and Baalke work in tandem.
The Jaguars have the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft for the second straight year and have about $60 million in salary-cap space, a number that could increase with potential roster moves over the next week.
Many expected Khan to clean house considering the Jaguars have lost 35 of their past 41 games and have a league-high 10 losing seasons in the past 11 years. But Khan insisted on keeping Baalke despite his presence creating concern for some coaching candidates.
Baalke has a less-than-stellar reputation in league circles, and his past five NFL seasons ended with a coaching change. But his first year as GM in Jacksonville was marred by Meyer, who was fired in mid-December after 13 games in what will go down as one of the most turbulent tenures in NFL history.
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Khan kept the 57-year-old Baalke around to lead the coaching search, a winding process that started and ended with Pederson. Jacksonville hired Pederson five weeks after first interviewing the former Philadelphia Eagles coach. Pederson was one of 10 candidates interviewed in what Khan called an “exhaustive process with no preconceived notions.”
The 54-year-old Pederson was widely considered one of the top options. He made the playoffs three times in five seasons in Philadelphia and led the Eagles to their first Super Bowl victory following the 2017 season.