Back in March the Baltimore Ravens made the argument that the NFL needed to expand its instant replay rules as to what plays were reviewable. The Ravens proposed making all but eight plays capable of being reviewed. Among the eight exempt would be so-called “judgement calls.” Plays like pass interference, holding and illegal contact. What would be reviewable were referee calls on illegal hits on defenseless players, a call that NFL referees seem to miss or incorrectly call enough times that it’s a real problem.
The league meetings pushed the Ravens proposal to May to look at it again, but right before it could get voted on the Ravens pulled it.
https://twitter.com/RavenNationLIVE/status/733406075152654337
I’m not sure why the Ravens decided to back off of their replay plan. They’ve not commented on it as of yet. What I do know is Baltimore’s recommendations weren’t enough. The NFL’s replay situation is a mess and there’s one easy way to fix it; make every play reviewable.
I’ve argued this before, but the Ravens’ plan doesn’t go far enough. So-called “judgement calls” have more an impact on the game than any other single penalty an official can call. Lasts eason teams gained 1,012 yards on pass interference penalties alone and the flag was thrown for PI 104 times. It’s a penalty that can flip the field, steal momentum and just flat-out alter the outcomes of games.
Those numbers are huge, but you know what? That was a down year. In 2014 pass inference was called 215 times for a total 3,890 yards. The 2013 totals were 247 times for 4,171 yards.
And that’s not to say it should be called less, but how many times have you watched a game where an egregious PI call was handed out that on replay was completely invisible? Holding calls, personal fouls, targeting? All should be on the review list. If it’s obvious enough to be called in the first place, then it should be obvious enough to see and justify on the review. All of those calls have a much bigger impact on the game than where the ball should be spotted.
So why the resistance in altering the policy? The argument is that it would make the game take longer, but since when does anyone watching care about that? You and I, we spend all day on Sunday from 1 p.m. until Midnight watching football, then we watch the Monday night game and the Thursday night game. Do you check the clock a lot? I don’t either.
Also, the number of challenges a head coach has wouldn’t change. He tosses the challenge flag on a ridiculous targeting call and wins, what’s the worst that could happen? He gets a third challenge? That’s already the rule.
The point is, these calls should be obvious. A jersey gets pulled on a hold, a player targets and tries to injure another player or a defender swats a wide receiver’s arms down before he can catch the ball. There’s really no such thing as a “judgement” call.
And I know that referees are human and can make mistakes. Anyone could miss a call or think they saw something that didn’t happen. But NFL Football is the biggest sport on the planet with God only knows how many cameras pointed at the action on the field at any given time. What’s wrong with utilizing the technology that’s already there to make the game as fair and competitive as it can be?
The NFL announces Saturday that they’re going to implement some replay changes on their own. Among those would be a specific list of plays that can’t be reviewed and assistance from officials at the league office to make the replay calls. It will likely pass.
Seven new rules for 2016
The NFL owners did approve seven new rules for the 2016-17 season. The extra-point try is now permanently on the 15-yard-line. The offensive and defensive play-callers, if they are on the field, can now use the in-helmet communication with players, all chop blocks are now illegal, a “horse collar” now includes a player’s name plate or above. If you can’t call a time out and try to, you get a delay of game penalty. A receiver illegally touching a forward pass after being out of bounds is now a loss of down and no longer a five-yard penalty. There will be no more multiple spots of enforcement after a double foul on the change of possession.
