It was the Rams who proposed making roughing the passer a reviewable play

[www.turfshowtimes.com] It was the Rams who proposed making roughing the passer a reviewable play
L.A. is involved in changing the rules, again. Or at least, attempting to

By Kenneth Arthur@KennethArthuRS Feb 27, 2023, 4:38pm CST

NFL: Super Bowl LVI-Los Angeles Rams at Cincinnati Bengals
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
On Sunday, it was reported that an NFL team proposed making roughing the passer a reviewable penalty. On Monday, NFL Network’s Judy Battista expanded on that report, adding that it was the Los Angeles Rams who proposed the change.

Per Battista, the conversation was centered on “sling vs. slam.” The slam, when a defender picks up the quarterback in the air and slams him onto the ground, is when it becomes problematic, according to Battista. The “sling” is considered the natural progression of the play.

The committee also spent 90 minutes discussing officiating and how to become more consistent across the league, per Battista. Troy Vincent, executive vice president of football operations, said the committee was pleased with the level of training of its officials, according to Battista.

The Rams were involved in one of the most controversial NFL penalties of all-time, when officials didn’t throw a pass interference penalty at the end of the 2018 NFC Championship game. There was talk of making pass interference a reviewable play, which passed in 2019, and then was reversed after poor results in 2020.

Roughing the passer penalties were said to be too frequent by fans and media in 2022 as a “point of emphasis” for the league, but the Competition Committee is thought to have already deemed them mostly fair. It is not expected that the league will approve such a review in 2023.

However, another rule up for debate is onside kick opportunities. The XFL is currently running a fourth-and-15 alternative to the onside kick, something that some NFL teams may like to see approved in 2023. Onside kicks have become an impossibility for the most part and so the end of games are just that: The end of games.

Is that unfair?

Fourth-and-15 would likely result in more conversions and for some teams, gaining 15 yards on a single play is hardly the improbable. In fact, some teams might start going for it often given the weapons and quarterbacks on some offenses. Certainly not, though, the 2022 L.A. Rams.