Todd Bowles' reasoning for not going for 2 on final drive to avoid overtime is absurd

Fact: I don't think anybody cares for NFL's overtime rules, whether that be during the regular season or the postseason. Until college football decided to mess it up, it actually had the best version of overtime. Each team should be allowed to possess the ball. If you match your opponent's score on the first two possessions, you have to go for two. Unfortunately, the NFLPA would never allow this...

However, with the way the regular season overtime rules are set up, if you are able to win the game in regulation as the visiting team, you have to do it. During the final minutes Monday Night Football, Todd Bowles' Tampa Bay Buccaneers had the chance to do just that vs. the undefeated and two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at their place. They should have gone for two.

You had a chance to end the Chiefs' perfect season in regulation at their place. Tampa Bay was 4-4 and 1.5 games back of the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC South race, a team who already completed the season sweep of them. Even if Tampa Bay came up short, nobody would have batted an eyelash at the attempt. It was the right situation to go for the win, rather than leave it up to chance in overtime.

Kansas City won it in overtime. Bowles cited the "wet field conditions" as to why Tampa Bay kicked it.

This was another game Tampa Bay could have won, but cost themselves dearly in the fourth quarter.

Todd Bowles' explanation of not going for two is utterly maddening

I remember listening to The Herd With Colin Cowherd back in the day. In between his shameless pandering for all things Lincoln Riley and USC Trojans football, he did have a great point about NFL overtime. He believes that the visiting team should get the ball first. After all, they had to overcome so much to even force overtime with travel, and probably being an underdog in most instances anyway.

I can kind of get behind that, even though old college football overtime is still by far and away better than whatever the NFL has amended it to this week. That being said, the first possession of NFL overtime is determined by a coin flip. This is football after all. While I have learned to accept that if you score a touchdown on the first possession that it counts as a win, you cannot leave it up to chance.

In my estimation, you only play for overtime as a visiting opponent if you have to kick a field goal to get you there. Should you score a touchdown like the Buccaneers did, you might as well go for two. What do you have to lose beside the game itself? Unless it is like Week 17 or 18 or something, you have time to make up a heartbreaking loss with a win later in the season. Tampa Bay lost anyway.

Citing wet field conditions as a reason not to go for it is the most cowardly football thing I have heard.