Less than a year after the NFL made pass interference reviewable, NFL owners are not expected to vote on it in the league’s upcoming meeting and will let the rule expire after one season, per The Washington Post’s Mark Maske.
The New Orleans Saints pushed heavily for pass interference to become reviewable during the 2019 offseason following the missed call in their NFC Championship Game loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The NFL implemented the rule this past season, but it didn’t take long for the review process to become universally hated.
Even when there were obvious cases of pass interference, the replay system would routinely defer to the decision made by the on-field referees. In fact, Denver Broncos head coach Vic Fangio said that officials were instructed not to overturn pass interference decisions unless it was a blatant missed call. Many coaches grew frustrated throughout the season burning precious timeouts and challenges to review pass interference and the rule itself hurt the Saints.
When teams were polled after the season about bringing the rule back, an overwhelming majority called for the rule to be tossed out. Now, everyone around the NFL will get their wish with PI reviews eliminated after a one-season trial period.
In its place, the NFL could be considering implementing a sky judge next season. Coaches have called for a sky judge for years and now with the league’s competition committee in favor of it, the NFL could follow in the XFL’s footsteps to improve the game. After years of everyone around the league being frustrated over frequent missed calls and the NFL not embracing greater technology and resources available, change might finally be possible.