With the United States Football League (USFL) making a return with a new season of spring football marking its second season till date, check out the main rules differences in the USFL vs NFL
Football fans now have multiple options to watching football with the XFL and USFL, besides the NFL.
USFL vs NFL rules differences, overtime, end zone fumbles, emergency quarterback, play reviews, clock management, scrimmage plays
Starting this weekend in the @USFL, teams that fumble out of the back of the endzone will retain possession of the ball. @NFL great Howie Long thinks this rule change, along with cameras in the huddle, will draw younger viewers to their couches. @USFLonFOX
Full Howie Longโฆ pic.twitter.com/llGx1h3aTK
— The Next Round (@NextRoundLive) April 13, 2023
The USFL is great about their rules. I wish the NFL would implement more of these rules https://t.co/6OdpbGfN7F
— Michael Burgett (@michaelburgett) April 13, 2023
As fans gear up for the playoffs of the recently reinaugurated XFL, The USFL began its second season on Saturday, March 15.
Just two months back, the NFL finished with an exciting Super Bowl match where the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles.
The XFL and USFL
The XFL and USFL have some pretty noteworthy changes that have got the interest of people. While a traditional organization like the NFL prefers to stay with the basic rules and conventional rules, leagues like the USFL and XFL have decided to include certain modifications and differences in rules.
USFL vs NFL rules differences
Given below are the various rules differences between the USFL and the NFL:
Kickoffs
In the 2023 USFL season, teams will place the ball in the 20-yard line for kickoffs. This is a big difference in comparison to the 35-yard line set in the NFL. Moreover, for kicks that go directly out of bounds, opposing teams will start the series at the 50-yard line.
The USFL explained on their official site:
Kicking team members must line up within one yard behind the 20 and must be stationary when the ball is kicked. Receiving teams must have at least eight and no more than nine players lined up in a set-up zone between their 30- and 40-yard linesโ.
End zone fumbles
In the NFL, when players fumble the ball through the opposite end zone it is considered a touchback, which results in a possession loss.
While the USFL have maintained the same rules on fumbles on every other part of the field, they have made some changes for end zone fumbles. In the USFL, fumbles through the other teamโs end zone will see the ball spotted right back where it was originally lost. This also means that the offense will retain the possession.
Emergency quarterback
The USFL have decided to change the rule book b adding a third quarterback on the sideline in case the first two go down. They have done this to ensure that the match remains competitive for the viewers.
The league clarified:
To ensure fairness, if the player is activated and enters the game anytime in the first three quarters, the first two quarterbacks cannot re-enter the game. If the QB enters in the fourth quarter, the original two quarterbacks may reenterโ.
Play reviews
While both leagues feature reviews of every scoring play there are some differences in how it works. In the NFL, coaches can start with two opportunities to challenge certain plays. Meanwhile, for the USFL, the limit is just once per game.
However, one big difference in the USFL is that the Command Center has the authority to revert any ruling on the field without waiting for the coaches to challenge a call for mistake made by the referees.
In such reviews, the center in charge of those replays will have the final say. They also have more flexibility as they can overrule incorrect calls like roughing the passer, facemasks, or horsecollars.
Clock management
While the NFL has a 40-second play clock, the USFL has a 35-second play clock. Moreover, the clock will keep running after incomplete passes in the USFL throughout the entire first and third quarters. It will continue to do so up until the five-minute mark in the second and fourth quarters. This change has been made to shorten game lengths like how the MLB did.
The official site states:
When a runner goes out of bounds, the clock will start on the ready-for-play except inside two minutes of the second and fourth quarters. The clock will remain stopped after a penalty inside two minutes of the second and fourth quarters. The clock will stop after a first down inside two minutes in the second and fourth quartersโ.
Scrimmage plays
In the USFL, after a team scores, the team can attempt to convert a 4th-and-12 play from their own 33-yard line in order to maintain possession. If in case they fail, the opposing side will take over at the dead ball spot.
Extra points
In the USFL, teams have three options after they score a touchdown. The first option is to try a field goad snapped from the 15-yard line for one point. They can also go for two points with a scrimmage play from the 2-yard line, or the last option is to attempt a three-point conversion with a play from the 10-yard line. Moreover, if the defense scores on any of those plays, they get two points regardless of the spot.
Forward passes
While the NFL allows only one forward pass per play, the USFL allows teams to complete two. However, both passes must be thrown from behind the line of scrimmage, which gives the quarterbacks more space to create surprising plays.
Overtime
In the NFL, both teams get at least one possession in the playoffs. However, the overtime rules in the USFL are much different. Games that end in ties will be decided via a shootout where each team tries to score three two-point conversions.
โIf the score is tied at the end of three possessions for each team, overtime advances to sudden death. Each team will get one possession and will continue until there is a winnerโ.