Rich McKay, Chairman of the Competition Committee, shared that there was a lengthy and thoughtful discussion on the Lions’ proposal to modify the playoff seeding format. On Tuesday, it came as a bit of a surprise when the league chose to table, rather than outright reject, Detroit’s proposal. The Lions’ suggestion aimed to allow Wild Card teams to be seeded above Division Champions if their regular season record was superior.
McKay noted that the decision to table the proposal signifies there is some level of support for the potential change. However, he also acknowledged that this conversation has come up before and the core debate remains the same. “It always circles back to the traditionalists arguing that winning the division should mean something,” McKay explained. “To them, ‘something’ means qualifying for the playoffs, but they also want to ensure that winning the division gives you the opportunity to host a playoff game.” McKay further added, “We must be careful not to devalue the significance of division championships, as they have proven to be an important structure for us.”
