NFL Changes Trade Deadline

The NFL Competition Committee has decided to change the NFL trade deadline from week 6 to week 8.

The reasoning for the rule change is so that teams have more time to make moves that could save their season in the event a key player is injured. For instance, last season the Oakland Raiders were able to trade for Carson Palmer but when the Chiefs lost Matt Cassel a few weeks later, they were stuck with Tyler Palko. Had Kyle Orton not gotten released by the Denver Broncos, the Chiefs likely wouldn’t have come as close to winning the division.*

*Then again if you are in the Ricky Stanzi camp, perhaps the Chiefs WOULD have won the division after a switch to Stanzi. Alas, we’ll never know.

I’m not sure moving the deadline back two weeks makes that big of a difference. I’m guessing the thinking here is that now the deadline is at the halfway point of the season. Still, if one team has their QB injured the week before the deadline and another the week after, the team that had their player get injured first still has an advantage.

Other rule changes implemented were:

-Players will be forced to wear knee and thigh pads starting in 2013.

-Teams can bring back one player placed on IR later in the season

What do ya’ll think of the new rules? Smart or pointless?