Mike Pereira
NFL & College Football Rules Expert
Some of the best athletes on the field are going to be much less important this season with the introduction of Hawk-Eye technology to the NFL. That’s right, we’re talking about the chain gang.
The older guys trotting out on the field with the stakes and yard markers to make some of the biggest decisions in every NFL game will be less important this season. This season will see the introduction of new technology that will help measure the football and determine whether teams have achieved a first down.
Hawk-Eye technology has most notably been used in soccer and tennis. On the pitch, the technology has been used to determine whether a ball crossed the line and should be a goal. In tennis, the reviews are great.
How will it work? Well, instead of the referee blowing a play dead and calling for a measurement, there will be lasers all over the field that will be able to determine whether the offense achieved a first down much quicker than that process.
The reveal of whether the first down was achieved will be shown on the scoreboard for everyone in the stadium to find out the result at the same time. The reaction will be great and should be a good addition to the game.
One key here is that the referees’ job is just to place the ball and then let the technology take over. Their placement of the ball, though, will not be adjusted. All we’re going to get is a yes or no answer to whether a first down was achieved by the offensive team. The ball will not be moved.
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