Here’s where you can expect a spike in penalty flags in the 2022 season
After referring to increases in rule enforcement as “points of emphasis” for several years, the NFL has apparently pivoted to “points of clarification” ahead of the 2022 season. This year’s primary “point of clarification” is the illegal contact penalty.
“The NFL has asked its on-field officials to pay particular attention to illegal contact fouls during the 2022 season,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert explained in a new report Monday.
Illegal contact is a complex rule, but basically, a defender can’t make contact with a receiver before the quarterback throws the ball, when they are more than five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. It is not to be mistaken with pass interference, which is called when the ball is already in the air.
Seifert noted there were 36 illegal contact calls last season, when the average illegal contact penalties called from 2002-2020 was 97.
This means there’s a high likelihood of a big spike in these calls for the 2022 season. In two previous seasons where illegal contact was a point of clarification (2014, 2003), the calls rose from 52 to 148 and 79 to 191, per Seifert.
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 03: Kyler Murray #1 of the Arizona Cardinals scrambles out of the pocket as an official throws a flag during a 37-20 win over the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium on October 03, 2021 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
There’s also a point of clarification on “roughing the passer” penalties.
“The competition committee has clarified that contact to the helmet and below the knee area must be forcible, in recognition that some officials have thrown flags for minor contact in recent seasons,” Seifert said.
It’s fair to expect a jump in illegal contact flags early, especially during the pre-season. But we’ll have to wait until the real games start to see how much more the flags will actually come flying out.
