Replacement officials, kickoffs and other rule changes will be discussed at NFL’s annual meeting

A football with the NFL shield logo rests on the turf during the second half of an NFL wild card playoff football game between the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Chargers, Jan. 11, 2026, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Greg M.

Cooper, File) 2026-03-29T10:00:08Z Replacement officials, potential rule changes, artificial intelligence, health and safety issues, international growth and flag football will be among many topics discussed when NFL owners, executives and coaches gather for their annual meeting this week in Arizona.

One topic that dominated the conversation this time last year — the tush push — isn’t on the agenda because there is no proposal to eliminate the play even though it was nearly banned in a close vote in 2025.

NFC coaches will speak to reporters on Monday, AFC coaches will do so on Tuesday and Commissioner Roger Goodell closes it out.

Here’s a look at the several topics: Replacement officials The biggest proposal released by the NFL competition committee is a contingency if the league chooses to use replacement officials in case of a work stoppage as it did to start the 2012 season.

The current collective bargaining agreement with the NFL and the NFL Referees Association expires on May 31.

The proposal would allow the replay center in New York to advise the on-field officials on any missed roughing the passer or intentional grounding penalty, as well as any act that would have led to an ejection had a penalty been called.

The NFL’s used of replacement officials for the first three weeks of the 2012 season resulted in several mistakes and wrong calls, including the disputed TD catch known as the “Fail Mary.” “The negotiations with the officials have not gone as quickly as we would have wanted,” NFL executive Jeff Miller said. “We’ve made a number of proposals.

We’re looking to improve the accountability and performance of the officials, and we just haven’t gotten to where we need to go.

So, we’re going to play football this fall, and we’re going to need officials to do it.

So, this is part of the preparation, and we felt compelled to make these sorts of decisions in anticipation of playing football in a different environment.” Dynamic kickoff changes There are several minor tweaks being proposed for the dynamic kickoff rule that is entering its third season. “In 2024, we had 920 returns, and we had 25,000 return yards.

In 2025, we had 2,076 returns, and we had 53,869 yards,” said Rich McKay, Atlanta Falcons CEO and Comp

原文链接: AP News