[Steve_Seattle]

"Which is close to the way it used to be, until the league figured out that higher-scoring games sell more Viagra, pickup trucks, and beer. So it changed the rules to make it easier to score."

Actually, scoring in the NFL hasn't changed much over the years. In 1960, the average points-per-game per team was 21.56. In 2011, it was 22.0 ppg, the highest since 1965, when it was 23.05 ppg. However (and I haven't checked it), scoring in college MIGHT be up because of the increase in teams playing the wide-open, no-huddle, Oregon-style spread offense, not because of rule changes.

[1rudeboy]

I did fail to consider changes in strategy. But there is no question that the league has changed the rules in order to favor offense. In fact, one could consider the possibility that NFL games of this day, if played under the rules of the 1960’s, would essentially be scoreless. Simply because of the increased athleticism of all the players, and 1960’s rules favoring defense.