The NFL has informed teams that it modified what can be shown on videoboards during field goal and extra point attempts, requiring clubs to use the same All-22 angle or static image for both kicking teams, according to a memo obtained by ESPN that was sent to all clubs on Sept. 7. The league said the modification is designed to ensure competitive equity and warned teams that violations will result in discipline.
NFL tells teams to use same videoboard angle for both kicking teams
The NFL has informed teams that it modified what can be shown on videoboards during field goal and extra point attempts, requiring clubs to use the same All-22 angle or static image for both kicking teams, according to a memo obtained by ESPN that was sent to all clubs on Sept. 7. The league said the modification is designed to ensure competitive equity and warned teams that violations will result in discipline.
The NFL has long required all videoboards and ribbon boards to display a static image -- no flashing images, blinking effects or moving text and images -- or an All-22 view, such as the high-sideline or high-end-zone angle, during kicks.
Ryan Paganetti, a former analytics coach with the Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars and Las Vegas Raiders, posted on X on Sept. 1 that he had studied a decade of New England Patriots television broadcasts when Bill Belichick was head coach from 2000 to 2023.
Paganetti said he discovered that when opposing kickers lined up for an attempt at Gillette Stadium, the videoboard displayed a reverse All-22 view of the kick, resulting in a second set of offset goalposts on the board and creating an optical illusion for opposing kickers. He added that of the 52 kicks he studied that were attempted by the Patriots, the reverse All-22 view of the kick was never shown on the videoboard.
Paganetti's post had nearly 17 million views this weekend. The Patriots were operating within the rules during that time, according to the NFL, and other teams with videoboards behind the uprights were experimenting with various things that were also within the rules. The league said that practice would no longer be allowed under the new requirement to use the same All-22 angle or static image for both kicking teams.
- The source does not state the date the new videoboard requirement takes effect.
- The source does not state what discipline teams would face for violations.
- The source does not state whether the NFL reviewed or verified Paganetti's study of the broadcasts.
- The source does not state which other teams experimented with videoboard displays behind the uprights, or what those experiments involved.
- The source does not state which weekend the figure of nearly 17 million views refers to.
- The source does not state whether the New England Patriots or Bill Belichick were asked to respond to Paganetti's post.