In many sports around the world, technology has changed the game for the better. 2023 saw the introduction of a pitch clock in baseball, which has helped to speed up the action, and help a host of new fans to become interested in a faster sport.
In soccer, goal-line technology has eliminated the need for guesswork among the match officials.
Football is another sport to have benefited from new innovations, and the NFL has improved as a direct result. But what are those changes, and how is the league taking advantage of them?
The Latest Move
Technology is introduced for a number of reasons but, primarily, the NFL wants to keep things fair. The match officials will always have a part to play game, but the league aims to keep human error down to an absolute minimum.
The National Football League is big business with millions of viewers tuning in to watch, added to the many thousands attending the game in person. Associated industries such as sports betting are also involved, with significant revenue stakes on NFL futures and other markets.
In short, there is added pressure on the officials to get things right, and the most important technology move in recent years saw the introduction of Hawkeye’s Smart Technology in replay booths across the league.
Hawkeye have been aiding other sports for years, and their prime role is to provide video footage of marginal calls. By setting up a system of cameras around the ground, they can assist on-field officials with replays of possible fouls and infringements.
The introduction may have been overdue, but Hawkeye has certainly helped in reducing those disputed calls.
Computerized Calls
The biggest changes in sports technology involve the rise of the digital age. In the past, if players and coaches wanted to assess their play and areas in which they could improve, they had to rely on an external third party recording everything on pen and paper.
In the present day, stats are everywhere with the coaching staff able to call up any aspect of a player’s game. Potential weaknesses and areas to improve can then be assessed.
Coaches also use this technology when studying the opposition. The figures will show potentially weak parts of defense and attack that could be targeted.
While this type of analysis has revolutionized the game off the field, there have been additional in-play benefits too. In 2014, Microsoft delivered two products, Surface Tablets, and the Sideline-Viewing System, to aid a coach during the match.
These pieces of tech provided bird’s eye view images of formations which allow coaches to act accordingly. Prior to this advancement, the head coach would have to rely on receiving grainy images via fax.
Player Performance
Those giant shoulder pads aren’t just in place to protect players. Their size offers the opportunity for radio transmitters to be placed inside. In turn, data is collected by receivers which are installed throughout the stadium, giving key, real-time data on a player’s performance.
The coaching team will analyze the statistics that are produced, and they can monitor a player’s speed, positioning, and distance covered during the match. If there is a drop off in their performance, in comparison with the previous week’s data, the coaches can act accordingly.
Performance is naturally important, but those shoulder pads form part of a safety element that has also benefitted from recent advances in technology.
Player Safety
Many sports around the world, are taking a closer look at player safety and, in particular, the issue of head injuries. New concussion protocols are in place in sports such as cricket and soccer, while the NFL has also targeted this important concern.
Helmets are obviously the most important piece of equipment in this respect. They are high quality, and made to withstand impact, but a clever technology innovation takes things a step further.
NFL helmets now contain sensors that monitor the impact of hits to the head. When a hit is made, medical staff can instantly assess the severity of that impact.
GPS tracking has also assisted with keeping injuries to a minimum. Coaches can now monitor the movement of players during practice matches and actual NFL games. If it’s felt that their workload is too high, a head coach can make the call to substitute them.
Technology doesn’t always get it right first time. If we come back to soccer, there is huge controversy over the use of the Virtual Assistant Referee, and some high profile errors that have recently occurred.
In the main, those errors are kept to a minimum, and the new innovations that have appeared in the NFL have been successful ones. Their introduction is designed to benefit both players and fans, and the game is much stronger for all of these ingenious inventions.
