FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Patriots' have been one of the NFL's more successful teams when it comes to leaping over the line of scrimmage to block extra points or field goals over the last two years, but their ability to do so might be negated due to a rule change.
Sparked by a proposal from the Philadelphia Eagles and with backing from the NFL Players Association, leaping could be eliminated if the owners vote to do so at next week's annual league meeting in Phoenix.
On a conference call Thursday, vice president of officiating Dean Blandino explained the thinking behind banning jumping.