Danny Maciocia and Mike O’Shea are both taking an open mind into the CFL winter meetings.
Maciocia, the Montreal Alouettes general manager, and O’Shea, the head coach of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, are among the CFL officials attending the meetings in Calgary. Among the agenda items up for discussion are rules applications and potential changes.
CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston unveiled significant rules changes last September with the aim of modernizing the game over the next two seasons. This year, no single point will be awarded for errant field goals, punts or kickoffs that go through the end zone — either in the air or via a bounce.
If a returner fields a missed field goal, punt or kickoff in the end zone and either kneels or is tackled before advancing the ball past the goal-line, a single will be awarded.
There will also be a 35-second automatic reset on the play clock that begins once a play is dead. And each CFL stadium will have team benches on opposite sides of the field to facilitate substitutions.
But the biggest moves will come in 2027, when CFL fields will be modified. They’ll be reduced from 110 yards to 100 yards, end zones will go from 20 yards to 15 yard and goalposts will be moved from the goal-line to the back of the reconfigured end zones.
Johnston’s announcement drew the ire of many CFL fans who felt changing the field was a sign of the league trying to Americanize the Canadian game. But Johnston has been steadfast in saying moving the goalposts back will project a 10 per cent increase in end-zone completions and 60 more touchdowns scored per season.
He also said the current location of the goalposts not only impedes the fans’ sightlines but also creates potential player-safety issues while severely hampering playcalls.
“Only fools don’t change their mind,” Maciocia told reporters during a CFL video conference call from Calgary. “It’s never perfect.
“That’s just the reality of what you’re dealing with. I think you need to be open-minded.”
O’Shea, a native of North Bay, Ont., and former CFL linebacker, was somewhat outspoken when the new changes were announced. But time has given the Canadian Football Hall of Fame player a chance to reflect.
“I think the raw emotion is gone,” he said. “It might be sparked again here … I think I’m certainly in the mindset to listen, and if I believe I have something valuable to add, just like any other year I’ll try and add it.
“I’ve got more of an open mind.”
The meetings are slated to conclude Wednesday, after which Johnston is scheduled to hold a media briefing via zoom.
Among the other items up for discussion are: adjustments to overtime during the regular season; guidelines for CFL players to participate in 2028 Olympic men’s flag football event and the league’s schedule that season; the CFL free agency communication window; CFL player compensation transparency; and potential adjustments to the Grey Cup playoff format.
Currently the CFL splits its teams into the East and West Divisions, with the top-three qualifying for the playoffs. However, if a fourth-place team in one division has more points than the third-place squad in the other, the fourth-place club will cross over and become the opposing division’s third playoff seed.
It’s a format Montreal head coach Jason Maas said works well but he understands fans becoming upset when they see teams in one division with inferior records qualifying for the playoffs while their club misses out.
“It still provides a very competitive playoff system during the season,” he said. “Everyone knows you have to finish at a certain level.
“You still play football, you still play all the games to win. I think it still works. When bad things happen to you, you want to change it. … It has worked for quite a long time. It’s still exciting. It’s still part of our league.”
And Toronto GM Mike Clemons suggested the changes Johnston unveiled last fall haven’t become official just yet.
“There is an ability to talk and communicate about this so everything is not done,” he said. “We’ll get a chance to talk about those things (Tuesday) and we’ll see where we go from there.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 13, 2026.
Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press
