I agree that there ought to be a reward for manging your team through the regular season otherwise the play-off are 100% luck. (Last year I lost one game in the reguar season and then lost the SuperBowl by 3 points to the number 6 seed that got hot at just the right time).
You might also consider having the top six teams go the the play-offs with the #1 and #2 getting a bye the first week.
A minor award we give is in case of a tie, the win goes to the team with the better regular season record.
Finally, if the majority want the rule change I would let that one coach walk. You can't let one coach dictate what the league rules - it should be based on a majority rule system.