Buccaneers general manager Rich McKay and Titans coach Jeff Fisher, who are co-chairmen of the NFL Competition Committee, researched old booklets of past owners' meetings in an effort to find where in the world anyone came up with the "tuck rule."

Throughout the years, they found plenty of discussion about the now- controversial rule that cost the Raiders a chance at a championship.

What they saw from a 1981 booklet surprised them even more. That year, there were 36 proposed rule changes. This year there are only nine. Call it progress even though plenty of time will be allotted Tuesday for discussion about the tuck rule. It is not known whether there will be a time limit for rebuttal by Raiders owner Al Davis.

"Times have gotten a little better,’’ McKay said.

None of the nine rule changes being discussed are going to revolutionize the game. Because of the Patriots-Raiders playoff game, the tuck rule discussion will be the sexiest. Why? Because not even the Competition Committee can come to a consensus as to what to do.

For discussion purposes only, the committee put out suggestions into language changes to see if there is a solution. McKay, Fisher and the committee went back decades to see the reason behind the tuck rule. For those outside of Oakland and New England who don’t know, Tom Brady, the Patriots quarterback, had a fumble ruled an incompletion after referee Walt Coleman watched replays and saw that Brady brought the ball from his passing motion to his side.

Under the current rules, Coleman had the right to call an incomplete pass up until the moment he brought the ball to the side of his body. Replay confirmed that, so the ruling was correct.

"I watched the game live and I thought it was a fumble,’’ Fisher said. "Once I saw the replay, I could see that it was going to be ruled an incompletion.’’

The call was right, so the league and the owners will discuss whether to change the rule Tuesday. The language change would be to give the referee the latitude to rule the play a fumble once the continuous motion of the quarterback stops.

Here’s the problem, though. Making such a change would create more of a gray area for officials. Tucking the ball on the side is pretty clear. If it’s not tucked, the call is incomplete, not a fumble. It’s simple.

"The line now is completely that unless it’s tucked into the body, it’s an incompletion,’’ McKay said. "From the past we learned, when it doubt, it’s called an incomplete pass.’’

More than likely, there will be so much debate on the tuck rule that nothing will be done and the rule will stay the same. Officials will like it that way. Several coaches and general managers will like it that way. Others won’t.

Here are the other rule changes under consideration: