3/23/2005
KAPALUA, Hawaii (Ticker) - The NFL awarded the Super Bowl to New York in 2010. Of course, that's contingent on the construction of a new retractable roof stadium on the West Side of Manhattan.
NFL owners made it official at the conclusion of the annual meetings on Wednesday, approving the New York Jets' bid to host the game.
"Today is a landmark day, and the 2010 Super Bowl in the New York Sports and Convention Center will be a historic event," Jets owner Woody Johnson said. "We're thrilled about this announcement. I want to thank the NFL membership for granting the New York Jets and the city and state of New York to showcase this week-long, mega-event in the greatest city in the world."
On Monday, the Jets raised their bid for the rights to build on the land on the West Side of Manhattan to $720 million. But whether a stadium can be built there remains a major question since numerous political groups oppose it.
The Dolan family, which owns Madison Square Garden, has been involved in a bitter fight to block construction of the stadium.
The city hopes the stadium will help it land the 2012 Summer Olympics. New York is bidding against Paris, London, Madrid and Moscow.
The Jets, who currently play at Giants Stadium in New Jersey, have committed $800 million to the stadium project, with the city and state required to raise the rest of a $1.7 billion total.
The 2009 Super Bowl is expected to be awarded at the spring meetings in May. Atlanta, Miami, Houston and Tampa are bidding for the game.
NFL owners voted Wednesday on rules changes proposed by the competition committee.
A proposal that protects an unsuspecting player from being blindsided by a tackler received 24 of the 32 votes needed for approval.
The change to a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty for "blindsiding" was made to protect punters and kickers as well as quarterbacks after an interception. In 2003, tackle Chad Clifton of the Green Bay Packers tore two knee ligaments after being blindsided by defensive tackle Warren Sapp during an interception return.
Two other proposals - extending replay challenges to cover fumbles on plays already whistled by officials because the ball carrier was down on contact and banning "horse-collar" tackles - were tabled for now and likely will be voted on at the May meetings.
A proposal from the committee would permit the defense to recover the ball if replays showed a fumble occurred before the runner was down by contact, even if officials blow a whistle, which normally ends the play.
Under the rule proposed for a one-year trial period, the recovery would have to be immediate and clearly evident on replay, and the defense would not be permitted to advance the ball.
The committee wants to eliminate "horse-collar" tackles, where the defender grabs the ball carrier inside the back of the shoulder pads and drags him down. Such tackles would be deemed a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Philadelphia Eagles receiver Terrell Owens suffered a broken leg and severely sprained ankle when he was "horse-collared" by safety Roy Williams of the Dallas Cowboys in a December 19 game.
The Kansas City Chiefs made their annual pitch to reduce the penalty for defensive pass interference to match the 15-yard college limit. As expected, the proposal failed to receive approval.
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