Tuck rule to be no more

This will be of little consolation to Raiders fans, but the NFL has finally figured out that the Tuck Rule needs to go.

The Raiders and their fans know the tuck rule better than most teams and their fans. Their Super Bowl hopes were torn from them in 2001 when the most damaging use of the tuck rule was enforced.

As a short refresher, it was Raiders versus Patriots in the 2001 AFC Division round playoff game. The game was coming down to the wire with the Patriots driving when Charles Woodson came flying in on a corner blitz to hit Tom Brady and knock the ball loose. The Raiders recovered the fumble and looked to have won the game. But wait...

A call came down from above saying Tom Brady lost the ball while tucking it which meant the tuck rule applied and therefore it was NOT a fumble. It has long been a rather obscure and downright stupid (yeah, I said stupid) rule. If a player loses the ball while tucking it; that should always be a fumble.

The call had the football world stunned and asking why the rule not only still existed but ever existed in the first place. And yet it took the competition committee, who apparently moves slower than Treebeard from Lord of the Rings, 12 years to figure this out and finally toss the ridiculous rule.

Now, it will forever live on much like the "double touch" rule that existed during the days of "The Immaculate Reception" which several Raiders swear was violated on the play by Frenchy Fuqua. At least in that instance, one would have to prove Fuqua touched the ball first. With the tuck rule, it's as clear as day - that was a fumble.