The NFL has approved a one-year trial period for a new rule involving pass interference penalties.
The vote for the rule passed 31-1 among NFL teams, with the Bengals as the only dissenting vote. Under the rule, pass interference calls and non-calls will be made reviewable. They are subject to a coaches challenge unless it is within the final two minutes of a game, in which the NFL will initiate replay reviews.
This means that ticky-tacky penalties can now be reviewed, and instances where there’s an absence of a flag can also be reviewed on instant replay. For the NFL this is about getting calls right, and replay has always been a tool to do that.
“I personally believe it was the fact that every club wanted to get, and the league wanted to get these plays right,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said in his press conference. “Replay is to get it right. And ultimately people compromised, I think, on long-held views because they want to get the system right. They want to get the play right.”
Even though the rule change involves coaches challenges, there is no expansion of challenge flags. Coaches will still be limited to two challenges per game, which means they’ll have to do more management when deciding which plays to challenge. You can find out more about the new rule in the video below from competition committee chairman Rich McKay:
The Chiefs in particular were penalized 14 times for pass interference during the 2018 season, which was good for the second-most in the NFL per Chiefs Reporter BJ Kissel. Had this rule been in place during that season, it’s likely this number would be reduced and several of the instances of pass interference challenged. On the converse, the Chiefs were only awarded just nine pass interference calls on offense.
