The Nfl

Gripping Story

Why are quarterbacks anticipating improved performances this season? It's all about the feel of the ball

What happens when two players want to make a change in the NFL rule book? When those players are the Patriots' Tom Brady and the Colts' Peyton Manning--the biggest stars in the pro football galaxy--and they're backed by 20 other starting quarterbacks, the job gets done.

Since he began taking NFL snaps six years ago, Brady had been bothered by the inconsistent feel of footballs from game to game. That may sound petty, but consider this little-known practice that has been in effect for decades: The rule calls for 36 official balls, manufactured by Wilson, to be provided to the home team for each outdoor game and 24 for each indoor game, the balls to be available for testing with a pressure gauge by the referee two hours before kickoff. The home team and the officials had the option to use league-approved products supplied by Wilson (a bristle brush, a tack cloth and a semihard spongy cube) to rub down the game balls and remove the waxy, slippery sheen that they have when they come out of the box. A few quarterbacks, such as the Jets' Chad Pennington, prefer the balls to feel nearly new. Most, like Brady and Manning, want that sheen rubbed off so they can get a better grip and make the ball feel broken in.

"Imagine if Derek Jeter were handed a brand-new glove just before the start of every game," says Brady. "Baseball players break in their gloves until they feel perfect to them. It's ridiculous to [be forced to] play with new footballs. I can tell you there've been nights before road games when I have had trouble sleeping because I'm thinking about what kind of footballs I'll be throwing the next day."

CBS analyst and former passer Phil Simms calls it the biggest unknown factor in the game. "Last year, two days before the Super Bowl, [ Seattle quarterback] Matt Hasselbeck called me," says Carolina's Jake Delhomme, who played in Super Bowl XXXVIII. "You'd think he'd [have other things on his mind], but Matt says, 'How will the footballs be for the Super Bowl?' He knew what a big deal it was." (The 108 Super Bowl game balls are prepared by the officiating crew.)

So last February, while having dinner together in Miami Beach, Brady and Manning decided to approach their fellow quarterbacks about petitioning the NFL competition committee to change the rule. Brady proposed that the visiting team have access to a certain number of the allotted game balls--the number turned out to be 12--so it could prepare them the way it wanted; those balls would be stamped with the visiting team's name and kept on the visitors' sideline for use when that team was on offense. The remainder of the balls would be prepared by the hosts to their liking, 12 kept on the sideline for use on their drives and the other dozen in reserve in case bad weather created the need for additional balls.

All 20 quarterbacks Brady and Manning spoke with agreed to sign the petition. "Every guy I contacted was so excited," says Manning. "[The Jaguars'] Byron Leftwich said, 'Fax it to me right now.' Brett Favre said, 'Oh, this is fair. I'm getting ready to retire, and now you're fixing the footballs.'" The proposal faxed to the league also contained a suggestion by the Texans' David Carr that quarterbacks be permitted to break in balls in the week leading up to the game.

The committee approved the idea in March. Teams can also use balls from previous games if the officials deem them acceptable--if they're not too worn or discolored, for instance. "It's the first time I recall something put in front of the competition committee by players," says NFL vice president of officiating Mike Pereira. "It quickly became apparent that there were no negatives to it."

The quarterbacks are thrilled. "How can you throw a football well that you can't grip?" says Leftwich, who has relatively small hands for a 6'5" quarterback. "This is the best thing that's happened to me in a long time. As crazy as it sounds, I believe I'll play better this year. I believe instead of just getting a pass with a new ball somewhere near one of my guys, I'll be able to put it right on the money."