PHOENIX -- A lot of attention in the football world is geared toward draft preparation this time of year, and for good reason. The draft is the crown jewel of the NFL offseason.
But, for the next few days, attention will shift focus to the owners' meetings, or officially dubbed the NFL's annual league meeting.
This year, all 32 team owners and many high-ranking figures from each team will spend Sunday through Wednesday at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix. Outside of any unofficial meetings on the golf course, this is the time of year when the owners and competition committee take care of tabled business that can affect the upcoming season.
However, there will also be plenty of Steelers-related issues to discuss.
Art Rooney II's presence is obvious since this is the owners' meetings. However, Mike Tomlin will be part of the Steelers' contingent at the meetings, and not only because he's a part of the competition committee.
This is the time when Tomlin will break his silence with the media. The last time he spoke with reporters was his end of season press conference. In case you might not remember, Matt Canada's employment was still in question (publicly, at least) the last time Tomlin spoke publicly. So, there is definitely some catching up to do, and Tomlin will do so with local reporters that are on hand in Phoenix, including yours truly.
While we already heard Rooney's perspective on why Canada was retained for the third and final year of his contract, getting Tomlin's perspective on that will certainly be a main topic of discussion. Other issues that will be discussed will be the changes to the coaching staff, including the decision to let go of Jerry Olsavsky and hire Aaron Curry as part of the overhaul at inside linebacker, the roles of the new players on the roster and how they affect the existing players, his impressions from the Senior Bowl, Scouting Combine and various pro days he's attended, and much more.
Omar Khan will also be in attendance in Phoenix, and he's coming off a busy start to free agency in which the inside linebacker position and the interior of the offensive line have undergone a significant makeover. The last time Khan addressed the media wasn't that long ago at the Combine, but the team has obviously transformed via free agency, so getting Khan's reasoning behind every transaction -- and the ones that didn't happen -- will pique everyone's interest.
And, of course, speaking with Khan will also reveal more about Andy Weidl's role in draft preparation and the free-agent signings that have taken place thus far.
The conversations with Tomlin and Khan will certainly be valuable, but there will also be actual NFL business to discuss and report. That'll be part of Rooney's meeting with the media. The NFL has 17 proposed rule changes and five bylaw changes to discuss during the meetings.
The most significant of the proposed rule changes came from the Rams, who proposed that roughing-the-passer penalties could be reviewed by officials and/or a coach's challenge. This comes as no surprise given the lack of consistency with which the rule is enforced.
Of course, it could sound like a good proposal on its surface, much like the initial feeling when pass interference calls and non-calls became reviewable. But, we saw how that went, and it was scrapped after just one season. So, adding replay to another penalty that can be argued as subjective might just be repeating history.
Along with the Rams, five other teams have proposed eight other rule changes:
• The Eagles proposed that players can wear zero (“0”) as a jersey number, and allow kickers and punters to wear any jersey number between 0-49 and 90-99.
• The Eagles proposed a rule that allows a team to maintain possession of the ball after a score by substituting one offensive play (fourth and 20 from the kicking team’s 20-yard line) in lieu of an onside kickoff attempt.
• The Chargers proposed to make the adjustment of the play clock following an instant replay reversal consistent with other timing rules.
• The Lions proposed that coaches can challenge personal fouls.
• The Lions proposed that teams could earn a third challenge if they win only one of their challenges instead of both.
• The Lions proposed a rule that would allow officials to consult on penalty enforcement.
• The Texans proposed a rule that allows officials to be able to review failed fourth-down attempts.
• The Jets proposed an expansion of the "crackback block" penalty for players in motion and blocking past the center.
The competition committee proposed eight rule changes:
• Changing the definition of a launch to leaving one or both feet.
• Changing the tripping penalty to a personal foul.
• Make the penalty for illegally handing the ball forward consistent with other illegal acts, such as illegal forward passes.
• Make the penalty for illegal punts, drop kicks, or placekicks consistent with other illegal acts, such as illegal forward passes.
• Put the ball in play at the receiving team’s 25-yard line when a touchback occurs from a punt.
• Prevent offenses from benefitting by an extension of the half as a result of their foul.
• Put the ball in play at the receiving team’s 25-yard line if there is a fair catch on a kickoff or safety kick behind the receiving team’s 25-yard line.
• Clarify the use of the helmet against an opponent by removing the “butt, ram, spear” language from Article 8 and incorporating those actions into Impermissible Use of the Helmet.
The most significant bylaw proposal comes from the Lions, which would allow teams to designate an emergency third quarterback from its inactive list or practice squad to play in a game if both of a team's active quarterbacks are ruled out. With all of the attention on concussions and preventing players from entering games with any concussion symptoms, this bylaw proposal makes a lot of sense.
The other four proposed bylaw changes include:
• The Chargers proposed wild-card teams could earn a higher playoff seed than division winners if the division winners finish the season with a sub-.500 record and the wild-card team finished with four or more wins than the division champion with a losing record.
• The competition committee proposed to change the claiming period to Monday for players who are waived on the Friday and Saturday of the last week of the regular season.
• The competition committee proposed strength of victory as the second tiebreaker for awarding contracts.
• The competition committee proposed to adjust the rules for postseason signings to account for standard elevations rule, and to freeze postseason rosters at 4:00 p.m. on the Wednesday following the last week of the regular season.
There is certainly a lot to cover over the next few days. Conversations with Rooney, Tomlin and Khan will give us clarity on the direction of the Steelers following a year of transition. And, of course, the proposed rule and bylaw changes, and the potential extension of Roger Goodell's contract will give us plenty to talk about regarding the health and well-being of the game itself.
What rule changes do you want to see take place? Let us know in the comments!
