During Sunday’s conference championship week in the National Football League (NFL), both first-seeds (New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs) saw their seasons crumble in overtime. Greg Zuerlein booted a 57-yard field goal to crown the Los Angeles Rams as NFC champions, while the Patriots converted three straight 3rd down and 10s in overtime, which all inevitably resulted in a Rex Burkhead two-yard rushing touchdown that advanced the Patriots to the Super Bowl. As a result of Sunday’s games, the Rams will face the Patriots in Super Bowl LIII on February 3. So, why is Twitter exploding with complaints from Saints and Chiefs fans? Well, their complaints are completely valid, and both fan bases hope that what happened during Sunday’s matchups will lead to some major rule changes within the NFL.

First, let’s evaluate what happened at the Superdome in New Orleans. The score was even at 20-20. There was 1:49 left on the game clock. Drew Brees led his offense to the 13-yard line of the Rams. It was 3rd down and 10. Drew Brees received the snap, took three steps back, and fired the ball in the direction of wide receiver Tommylee Lewis. Lewis extended his arms in an attempt to catch the future Hall of Famer’s spiral before Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman came over and knocked the living daylights out of Lewis. There was an intense moment of anxiety as everyone in the stadium glanced over at the refs, expecting yellow laundry to be thrown. Even Robey-Coleman of the Rams expected a flag. But nope, the refs thought it to be a fair, clean defensive play by Robey-Coleman. But it wasn’t! In fact, it was a textbook example of what defensive pass interference is.

Of the thousands who watched the game live and millions on TV, only a handful did not see the play as pass interference. Unfortunately, they were the officials and the only opinion that counted. If the refs had called it pass interference, which they should have, then the Saints would have gotten a first down, ran the ball three times, and kicked a chip shot with about ten seconds remaining in the game ensuring Drew Brees and his Saints a trip to Atlanta. And, let’s not argue about whether the play was pass interference or not. The NFL rulebook specifically states that pass interference occurs “when any act by a player…hinders an eligible player’s opportunity to catch the ball.” The act of not making any attempt to defend the ball, having your back to the play, and taking out the intended receiver while the ball is still in the air is a true act of defensive pass interference. Therefore, I hope that for the sake of referees and the NFL, the NFL makes a rule that allows for similar situations to be reviewable.

Another rule change that the NFL should bring to the table is overtime. Let’s admit it, the overtime rules in the NFL are terrible, specifically the idea that whoever scores a touchdown first wins. The game, like what happened between the Chiefs and Patriots, weighs heavily on the coin toss. The Patriots won the toss, elected to receive (Why wouldn’t they?), and scored a touchdown on their opening drive, not even giving Patrick Mahomes a chance to return the favor. This overtime rule mindset doesn’t exist in any of the other major professional sports leagues, nor should it.

Think about it. What if in baseball, in extra innings, the visiting team hit a home run and therefore won the game. The walk-off would be rewarded to whoever scores first. What if in hockey, in a shootout, a team elected to go first, scored, and therefore won, not even giving the other team a chance to score and even the deficit. Those ideas in baseball and hockey seem preposterous. So, why is the NFL different from the MLB, NHL, and even college football when it comes to overtime policies? That’s a question the NFL needs to address during the offseason.

Look, I’m not trying to bash the NFL. Well, I am, but I do feel that the NFL has some better-defined rules than those in college football (i.e. the process of catching and having possession). But in order to avoid the chaos that transpired on Sunday, it’s in the best interest of the NFL to consider potential rule changes surrounding what is reviewable, and making overtime less reliant on the luck of a coin toss. This may be a stretch, but I’m hoping for a little common sense from the NFL.