Features

• The NFL review rules allow the coach of a team to challenge a call in the first 28 minutes of each half. The coach can do this by throwing a red flag on the field, signaling to the referee that a challenge is being made. In the last two minutes of each half, the NFL replay assistant in the television booth or press box decides if a play will be reviewed, with no limit on the number of plays that can be looked at. If a coach loses the challenged review, meaning that the call on the field is upheld, his team loses a timeout. If the call is reversed, no time out is charged. If a team has exhausted its allotted time outs, it cannot challenge a call. The referee has the final say on whether to uphold or reverse the call. Coaches are allowed just two challenges per contest, unless they are successful in both challenges and still have timeouts remaining. In this rare case, they are allowed a third challenge.
  
  

Types

• There are only certain types of plays that can be reviewed on the field. They include whether a player has crossed the goal line, if a pass was complete, incomplete or intercepted, if a player with the ball is out of bounds, recovery of fumbles and if an ineligible player has touched a forward pass. Other reviewable plays are whether the quarterback fumbled or was throwing the ball forward, illegal forward passes, forward or backward passes, runners ruled not down by contact from a defensive player, forward progress by a player, touching of a kicked ball, plays concerned with the placement of the ball and whether a legal number of players were on the field when the ball was snapped. A kicked ball that bounces off the goalposts is also reviewable.
  
  

History

• Instant replay came into use in 1986 after an outcry from coaches, players, fans and team executives for some sort of system to be available when a referee makes a wrong call. The speed of the game had increased to such a point that it was becoming virtually impossible for a referee to see everything that he had to see and be correct most of the time. The rules have been changing over the years. The old replay rules had no challenges from coaches; a replay official in the booth would signal to the referee to stop play and the replay official would make the judgment as to whether the play would stand. There was no time limit placed on this decision.
  
  

Expert Insight

• Players involved in reviewable plays will often urge their coach to challenge a play. The coaches sometimes have the benefit of being able to watch a potential reviewable play on the stadium monitor before making a decision whether to throw the flag, or someone from the coaching staff in the booth upstairs will contact them and tell them to challenge the call. Players will come back to the coach insisting, for instance, that they didn't fumble the ball and the coach has to make a quick decision whether to risk a time out with a challenge that might be wrong or have faith in the player and his staff.
  
  

Potential

• A play will be overturned only if the visual evidence from the replay is incontrovertible. This often leaves the referee at the mercy of camera angles. Some of the most difficult replays to make a decision on involve whether a runner crossing the goal line actually broke the plane of the goal with the ball. The number of players that are around the ball carrier make getting a good look at the ball in relation to the goal line extremely hard. Other tough replays for officials concern a receiver having possession of the football and both feet in bounds.