This past week the NFL officially tabled a proposal that would allow for video replay on Microsoft Surface tablets. Yes, this is the same Microsoft Surface tablets that announcers have called an iPad multiple times, despite the $400 million that Microsoft paid to become the official tablet of the NFL.
The decision came after a vote by NFL owners on whether teams should be able to watch video footage of plays on their Surface tablets. Currently, teams are only able to view pictures of the plays, which may seem slightly foolish considering the possible positive impact that video could have on play recognition and overall performance.
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Now it’s not necessarily true that teams will never be able to view video on their Surface tablets. The main reason why the vote turned out the way it did was because owners, coaches and players want more time to study sideline video and discover ways in which to maximize its potential. The functionality of the video has been tested during preseason games and the Pro Bowl last year, something that will almost assuredly happen again during the upcoming 2016 season. Teams who didn’t get to test it out last year will experiment during the preseason.
The NFL wouldn’t be the first major American sports league to exhibit a resistance to technological advancements. For years, Major League Baseball resisted proposed changes that called for things like instant replay in order to review calls made by umpires. Although the change was eventually implemented, many constantly argued that baseball should remain how it was: old-school and free of technology dictating how the game is played. Now you see a wide variety of proposed technological advances that could change the game for the better.
With all this being said, it’s nice to see that the NFL isn’t completely opposed to the idea of allowing for video replay on Surface tablets, but rather is waiting to allow teams to learn the technology. One of the biggest positives that would come from allowing video to be used on the tablets is the immediacy of viewing game film. You often hear of NFL players watching hours and hours of tape on their off days. As an athlete, being able to visually see what you’re doing right and wrong in motion is of the utmost importance. Once video is allowed on the sidelines players won’t need to wait until after the game to watch the tape in preparation for next week’s game. Instead, they can immediately make the proper adjustments and be ready for the next offensive or defensive series.
New Orleans Saints quarterback, Drew Brees, got to experiment with video on the sidelines during the 2016 Pro Bowl. During a Super Bowl week panel Brees spoke highly of the advancement saying he was able to show a receiver exactly where to adjust his route next time on the field in order to evade a defender.
Finding disadvantages to the possible implementation of video is similar to searching for a needle in a haystack. You could argue that older NFL coaches and players will have trouble adjusting to the newfangled tech on the sidelines, but as with the rest of our society, it’s time to adjust or hit the road.
At the end of March, the MLB approved the use of iPads in dugouts, which has been met with both excitement and apprehensiveness. It seems as though the NFL will be allowing video replay on the sidelines very soon, and when it does, players and coaches alike will reap the benefits.