The NFL has always been a league willing to pivot when it comes to its rules and how the game is played. But according to competition committee co-chair Rich McKay, there isn't expected to be much in the way of major changes in 2026.
The league has been tinkering with the idea of banning the tush push and making alterations to its onside kick rules for some time now — and the catch rule also resurfaced as a point of contention over the last few weeks of the season.
The NFL seems willing to stand pat though. Or at least that's what McKay believes in the lead-up to the new league year.
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NFL Competition Committee: 'The game is in a pretty good place'
Speaking to reporters ahead of the NFL Combine this past weekend, the former Atlanta Falcons CEO said that he doesn't anticipate many changes when the teams to get together to decide on the new rules — and that the tush push is likely here to say (at least for now).
"There's no team proposal that I've seen from it," McKay said, via NFL.com's Judy Battista. "So, I wouldn't envision it. But you never know. ... The game is in a pretty good place."
NFL fans disagree with McKay's assessment
"The officiating is God awful, it's not in a good place," a user pushed back. "I don't expect you to care about that because the quality of the product is irrelevant as long as you all keep making money."
"So now that Josh Allen uses the Tush Push 5x/game it's ok now?" another asked.
"I still think roughing the passer and pass interference penalties should be reviewable plays but whatever," a fan commented.
"Except we still don’t know what [a] catch is. And the interference calls are extremely inconsistent," another person posted.
"Tush push obviously needs to be banned," another user replied.
While the NFL is certainly the most popular league in American sports right now, there's always room for improvement.
There are plenty of lingering issues that the league could address without completely rewriting the rulebook. But we'll see if the committee chooses to take a redshirt year or not when the owners and their representatives get together March 29-April 1 in Phoenix.