We hear of proposed rule changes every offseason at the NFL owners’ meetings. Some make plenty of sense, while others may seem preposterous. This year, the focus on proposed rule changes was the Philadelphia Eagles’ unstoppable tush push. While many thought it would be banned, it’s safe for at least another year.
The most interesting rule proposal in 2025 came from the Detroit Lions. The Lions proposed that the NFL change its playoff seeding format. As it currently stands, seven teams that make the playoffs: the four division winners and three wild-card teams in each conference. The Lions, who finished 15-2 in the regular season, had to win their final regular-season game to clinch the NFC North and the NFC’s No. 1 overall seed.
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Under Detroit’s proposal, the Lions would’ve maintained a top-three seed even if they had lost to the Vikings in Week 18. The proposal hoped to change playoff seeding, meaning the top four records would be the top seeds regardless of division. That would have also helped the Washington Commanders. Washington finished 12-5, but fell to the No. 6 seed. The Commanders would have held the No. 4 seed over NFC South winner Tampa Bay and hosted at least one playoff game.
While the reseeding proposal sounded like a great idea, the Lions withdrew it without explanation. Detroit reportedly wouldn’t get the 24 votes needed to make it happen, so the rule proposal was withdrawn. You would think most NFL teams would love this rule, as it allows other teams to host a playoff game, potentially.
This rule would’ve helped the 2024 Commanders. However, it wouldn’t have been so good for the 2020 squad. That year, Washington won the NFC East with a 7-9 record.
There were theories as to why the Lions dropped the proposal, which they likely did with some encouragement from the NFL.
So, while it didn’t happen this time around, don’t rule it out in the future.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Lions withdraw rule change proposal that would benefit Commanders