I swear, half of the plays in the games I watch have a penalty. It just kills the flow of the game seeing a flag all the time, it feels like games back in the 00’s were not like this.
i’ve noticed refs missing some penalties tbh. they should be throwing the flag more but this year is a complete discipline issue across the board because many teams as new asf with players and backups so more penalties will happen.
this still wasn’t as bad as the mid 10’s years where their were just constant fights.
Inverse is true. Don’t reward shitty defenses for being beat. Qb throws a not accurate ball? Fuck it we can run through the wr to stop them. Lol be more accurate scrub. Like gtfo…
It’s the same every year. You need to accept that downfield pass interference penalties are a legitimate clutch strategy that works.
broncos had double the bills penalties and the records of penalties come from the distant past
Yup. But the penalties have been a problem for the last 3-4 years not just this one.
2009: 3669 penalties
2010: 3713 penalties
2011: 3896 penalties
2012: 3809 penalties
2013: 3635 penalties
2014: 4246 penalties
2015: 4326 penalties
2016: 4164 penalties
2017: 4166 penalties
2018: 4205 penalties
2019: 4278 penalties
2020: 3499 penalties (covid year)
2021: 3909 penalties (added a 17th game)
2022: 3726 penalties
2023: 2229 penalties on pace for 4012 (this on pace will vary a bit due to bye weeks for various teams)
Saw a sizable spike 2014-2019, but actually went down on averages the last few years while adding an extra week.
way to bring logic and statistics into this
… Can we get that breakdown by type of penalty, though?
It really paints far more interesting contextual pictures about how referee calls are shaping the league at any given time.
For example, what’s the trend on RTP and DPI and illegal contact and whatnot? These penalty rates impact the feel of the game far more than, e.g., ineligible receivers down the field.
Sure, I’ll do that for you in a few hours
You’re a G
bigggest takeaway for me: false start and defensive offside way down, dpi (and arguably defensive holding) up moderately, the rest holding steady at <5% of penalties called
Sure, I’ll do that for you in a few hours
I will say that the share of first downs achieved by penalty is similarly pretty stable
edit: busy as hell, and hitting the character limit so i’ll split into increases and decreases, but here you go, sorted by highest increase to smallest increase (decreases in child comment)
penalty_type 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Slope r^2 Neutral Zone Infraction 0.59% 0.52% 0.85% 0.94% 1.26% 1.08% 0.81% 1.18% 1.51% 1.57% 1.79% 2.29% 3.62% 3.55% 3.90% 3.52% 4.64% 3.41% 3.69% 4.16% 4.70% 5.36% 3.52% 2.71% 3.08% +0.17% 0.7198 Defensive Holding 3.83% 5.05% 3.71% 3.80% 4.53% 4.13% 5.33% 4.21% 2.84% 4.36% 3.47% 3.26% 3.77% 4.49% 5.47% 6.39% 6.14% 6.00% 6.94% 6.95% 7.08% 5.85% 4.86% 6.93% 6.00% +0.12% 0.4888 Unnecessary Roughness 4.33% 3.84% 3.00% 3.92% 4.26% 3.14% 2.88% 4.41% 4.24% 5.33% 4.43% 5.26% 5.78% 6.79% 8.70% 6.21% 6.47% 5.68% 5.83% 5.99% 4.52% 5.57% 4.98% 5.11% 5.29% +0.10% 0.3082 Defensive Pass Interference 8.35% 8.08% 7.73% 7.23% 6.63% 5.01% 5.36% 5.36% 5.03% 5.47% 5.85% 6.27% 6.24% 7.57% 7.68% 6.09% 6.53% 8.12% 7.82% 6.89% 7.80% 10.72% 9.34% 7.39% 8.86% +0.08% 0.1901 Defensive Too Many Men on Field 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 1.22% 0.87% 1.08% 1.09% 1.35% 1.03% +0.05% 0.5435 Roughing the Passer 2.06% 2.41% 2.72% 3.04% 3.21% 3.62% 3.12% 3.13% 1.98% 1.99% 2.18% 2.78% 3.04% 2.90% 2.85% 2.93% 2.86% 2.47% 3.10% 3.31% 3.89% 4.25% 4.64% 3.00% 3.51% +0.05% 0.284 Ineligible Downfield Pass 0.44% 0.68% 0.42% 0.40% 0.48% 0.34% 0.38% 0.20% 0.79% 0.80% 0.89% 0.23% 0.30% 0.16% 0.29% 0.71% 0.48% 0.58% 0.41% 0.46% 1.10% 0.77% 1.34% 2.77% 1.89% +0.04% 0.3182 Offensive Holding 19.54% 20.10% 18.36% 19.73% 20.05% 17.10% 18.87% 15.56% 16.87% 16.38% 17.75% 19.57% 18.35% 19.63% 18.08% 18.57% 20.21% 20.41% 19.41% 20.69% 20.85% 15.98% 20.42% 19.60% 18.64% +0.04% 0.0353 Illegal Formation 0.69% 1.08% 1.20% 0.88% 0.39% 1.50% 1.48% 1.51% 1.61% 1.99% 1.85% 2.00% 1.46% 1.25% 1.89% 1.24% 1.67% 1.89% 1.32% 2.09% 1.83% 1.64% 2.02% 1.62% 1.94% +0.04% 0.4155 Illegal Use of Hands 1.99% 2.77% 1.73% 2.13% 2.16% 1.61% 1.64% 1.55% 0.72% 0.98% 1.22% 1.26% 2.22% 2.49% 2.37% 4.85% 3.31% 2.59% 3.16% 2.06% 2.78% 1.67% 2.33% 1.81% 1.89% +0.03% 0.0643 Horse Collar Tackle 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.74% 0.88% 0.75% 0.96% 0.50% 0.37% 0.58% 0.61% 0.41% 0.55% 0.73% 0.50% 0.33% 0.32% +0.03% 0.4132 Offensive Pass Interference 2.46% 2.12% 2.15% 1.43% 2.04% 1.73% 1.88% 2.01% 1.75% 2.23% 2.48% 2.26% 2.07% 2.37% 1.95% 3.02% 2.91% 2.56% 3.37% 2.47% 2.84% 2.16% 2.43% 2.01% 2.16% +0.03% 0.1939 Illegal Blindside Block 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.17% 0.06% 0.06% 0.28% 0.10% 0.33% 0.28% 0.09% 0.32% 0.20% 0.87% 0.49% 0.34% 0.36% 0.43% +0.02% 0.6034 Illegal Shift 0.72% 0.36% 0.49% 0.64% 0.48% 0.68% 0.57% 0.66% 0.89% 0.49% 0.66% 0.61% 0.76% 0.56% 0.83% 0.50% 0.93% 0.96% 0.67% 1.28% 1.16% 0.80% 0.78% 0.89% 1.13% +0.02% 0.4566 Lowering the Head to Initiate Contact 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.49% 0.84% 1.18% 0.34% 0.00% 0.00% +0.02% 0.2114 Delay of Game 4.67% 4.37% 3.88% 3.53% 3.27% 3.45% 3.55% 3.03% 5.48% 4.71% 4.17% 4.43% 3.83% 3.99% 4.54% 4.14% 4.10% 4.05% 3.66% 3.31% 3.51% 4.14% 5.01% 5.21% 4.48% +0.02% 0.0459 Offensive Too Many Men on Field 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.06% 0.17% 0.38% 0.28% 0.28% 0.53% 0.22% +0.01% 0.5038 Disqualification 0.09% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.09% 0.08% 0.00% 0.03% 0.03% 0.03% 0.10% 0.10% 0.24% 0.09% 0.13% 0.12% 0.06% 0.17% 0.18% 0.26% 0.32% 0.59% 0.12% 0.26% 0.32% +0.01% 0.5134 Player Out of Bounds on Kick 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.20% 0.15% 0.28% 0.19% 0.40% 0.22% +0.01% 0.518 Taunting 0.03% 0.16% 0.49% 0.79% 0.81% 1.13% 0.27% 0.72% 0.31% 0.31% 0.23% 0.26% 0.40% 0.19% 0.90% 0.71% 0.71% 0.90% 0.50% 0.70% 0.26% 0.35% 1.34% 0.56% 0.49% +0.01% 0.0529 Illegal Double-Team Block 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.46% 0.38% 0.31% 0.07% 0.05% +0.01% 0.2603 Low Block 0.09% 0.13% 0.04% 0.03% 0.18% 0.34% 0.19% 0.07% 0.24% 0.35% 0.23% 0.19% 0.15% 0.28% 0.22% 0.18% 0.11% 0.06% 0.15% 0.06% 0.03% 0.00% 0.50% 0.40% 0.27% +0.00% 0.0494 Unsportsmanlike Conduct 1.56% 1.01% 1.06% 1.16% 0.57% 0.79% 0.81% 1.84% 1.64% 1.57% 1.55% 1.36% 1.67% 1.12% 1.50% 1.83% 1.92% 1.86% 1.99% 1.39% 0.90% 0.84% 0.96% 1.06% 0.92% +0.00% 0.004 Leverage 0.06% 0.03% 0.18% 0.12% 0.06% 0.11% 0.03% 0.03% 0.07% 0.07% 0.00% 0.06% 0.09% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.35% 0.29% 0.17% 0.03% 0.03% 0.16% 0.07% 0.22% +0.00% 0.0655 Kick Catch Interference 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.15% 0.17% 0.03% 0.06% 0.00% 0.05% +0.00% 0.2427 Lowering the Head to Make Forcible Contact 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.27% +0.00% 0.1154 Roughing the Kicker 0.06% 0.10% 0.18% 0.24% 0.18% 0.14% 0.11% 0.23% 0.21% 0.10% 0.07% 0.10% 0.24% 0.19% 0.10% 0.18% 0.06% 0.35% 0.03% 0.23% 0.23% 0.24% 0.28% 0.16% 0.05% +0.00% 0.0321 Player Out of Bounds on Punt 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.15% 0.08% 0.16% 0.03% 0.17% 0.07% 0.17% 0.19% 0.40% 0.56% 0.45% 0.24% 0.34% 0.17% 0.26% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% +0.00% 0.0033 Illegal Peelback 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.03% 0.00% 0.13% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.09% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.05% +0.00% 0.0716 Delay of Kickoff 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.07% 0.00% +0.00% 0.0848 Illegal Wedge 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.16% 0.00% 0.06% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% +0.00% 0.0068 Illegal Kick/Kicking Loose Ball 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.00% +0.00% 0.097 Leaping 0.06% 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% 0.03% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.06% 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% 0.11% 0.09% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.05% +0.00% 0.0004
What is rtp
Roughing the passer.
More rarely, roughing the punter or kicker.
this doesn’t mean anything bc the issue is the type of penalty
way more calls that require the refs to stand around and conference, wasting time and slowing the game down
somebody will say ‘well akshually the games are shorter’ no they gave up on some of those between play commercial breaks and started inserting ads into the ‘down time’ of games
really hasn’t been that pronounced even in the usual suspects of “game’s gotten soft”:
Season Defensive Pass Interference Defensive Holding Roughing the Passer Unnecessary Roughness 1999 1.09 0.50 0.27 0.56 2000 1.01 0.63 0.30 0.48 2001 0.88 0.42 0.31 0.34 2002 0.93 0.49 0.39 0.50 2003 0.86 0.59 0.42 0.55 2004 0.69 0.57 0.50 0.43 2005 0.78 0.77 0.45 0.42 2006 0.64 0.50 0.37 0.52 2007 0.57 0.32 0.23 0.48 2008 0.61 0.49 0.22 0.60 2009 0.69 0.41 0.26 0.52 2010 0.76 0.39 0.34 0.64 2011 0.80 0.48 0.39 0.74 2012 0.95 0.56 0.36 0.85 2013 0.94 0.67 0.35 1.06 2014 0.80 0.84 0.39 0.82 2015 0.90 0.85 0.39 0.89 2016 1.09 0.80 0.33 0.76 2017 1.04 0.93 0.41 0.78 2018 0.93 0.93 0.45 0.80 2019 1.05 0.95 0.52 0.61 2020 1.20 0.66 0.48 0.63 2021 1.10 0.57 0.55 0.59 2022 0.83 0.77 0.34 0.57 2023 1.09 0.74 0.43 0.65 We’re talking about an extra defensive holding every five games. an extra roughing the passer every eight.
It’s awesome that you put the effort into this and the other data below. But it’s sad because the people like OP and others in this thread will ignore it entirely
This year just seems like the refs think they’re the stars of the game and seem to be inserting themselves more and more into the games. There are several games this year that I genuinely question the validity of because of the refs’ actions towards the end of the game.
I’m watching less because life is just busier. I might catch the whole Dallas game, but 0 chance I’m watching any other full games.
They’re too damn long, and penalties are a small part of that, but it’s also just inherent in the broadcast at this point.
Yes. Yes yes yes.
It’s not just the nonsensical penalties each game, it’s a couple of things for me.
But the penalties and the way it seems to gear a game is at the top of the list. I paid for nfl+ to get red zone and use that most weekends as background noise. Other than that I only watch my team. And even if I can’t get the game locally I don’t go looking for it. I just watch the condensed game later. Something like this would have been unheard of for me even 5 years ago.
I actually cheer the (pointless) hope that ratings tank so badly that they realize they have to stop being so arrogant and fix the game. But, I remember many who “quit” the game years ago over politics and thought that was going to show em….and it so didn’t.
So, this is kind of what the game is becoming.
I’ve matured a lot and don’t buy into conspiracy much anymore, but the fact that the league registered their business as an entertainment company and not a sport does keep tickling my tin foil antenna.
I grew up watching the NFL in the very early 80’s; compared to then, football is a different game, with different rules, with different officiating, which has created imo a bad poor quality product that is less entertaining and can’t be counted on to appear fair, impartial, consistent, logical and simple while using common sense and reason.
This is a problem that I also feel is destroying the NBA and professional boxing.
I also don’t trust MLB home plate umpires to call a reasonable and consistent strike zone which really kills my enthusiasm, entertainment, excitement, and sometimes ruins my enjoyment and experience as a fan during Tigers games but that is my only real gripe with MLB.
For me it hasn’t been the same since the Covid season. Nowadays I mostly just watch the Packers. The NFL has been increasingly feeling a bit sterile and corporate.
First year watching?
It’s more so the ads than the penalties
I’m enjoying this season much less than normal but due to bad televised matchups, not penalties. The NFCE bores the hell out of me and we get a game of them per week in primetime. The Jets seem to have the max amount of primetime slots. TNF is always bad but I’ve skipped 2-3 SNF games this year, and I don’t know if I’ve ever done that by choice before this season. Just this past Sunday I believe 4-5 games ended by an FG margin and i didn’t have any of them televised in my area. Additionally, I hate the Europe games. Apparently my limit is 11 hours of football a day and 14 is too much for me.
I have slowly been watching a lot less football these last several years. I’m tired of the trash talking on social media by players and fans. Obviously bad officiating for the last decade, and the NFL refusing to fix it. It’s not even the number of penalties, but the inconstancy of it. The constant squeezing more money out of me just to watch it on TV. Plus the lack of player development. Now with gambling being sanctioned, I expect a major gambling scandal any day now. It seems like the current crop of owners only care about money.