Steelers president Art Rooney not in favor of expanded instant replay

With 23 rule reform proposals to be reviewed at the NFL owners' meeting next month, Pittsburgh Steelers president and co-owner Art Rooney II declared that he's not in favor of expanded instant replay Friday.

Rooney noted that the owners will have plenty to review during the conference. 

Many teams have submitted proposals for rules reform, with a common theme being the league's 32 franchises want more consistency from the league's officials. 

The 62-year-old executive appeared pessimistic about any of the proposed changes being implemented for next season. 

"In terms of what we see on the agenda so far, as you probably know, there are a lot of different proposals that have to do with instant replay," Rooney said to Steelers.com's Bob Labriola. "I personally am not really in favor of any of them. In general, I just don't think we need to increase the number of interruptions we have in our game at this point. I think the instant replay system is working fine. 

"Sure, it would be nice to have different and more plays reviewed, but you have to do that in the context of how many can you really fit into a game and not wind up with a four-hour game."

Rooney II is the grandson of Steelers founding owner Art Rooney, who died in 1988. He is the eldest child of Rooney's son, Dan, who currently serves as the Steelers chairman and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000. 

The Steelers' executive also noted that playoff expansion could be on the table, but logistics need to be worked out first. 

"I think we've always said (playoff expansion) is something that's worth considering," said Rooney. “But the details of it, when would the game get scheduled? Monday night is one of the possibilities, which I don't think is a great alternative. The idea is OK, it's just that when you get down to exactly how does it work, it gets a little complicated."