Throughout the years, the NFL has continually evolved its replay review technology to be better for fans watching at home and the officials in its central replay center. But so far, the league has kept that technology off the sidelines. While fans at home are able to see whether a receiver got his second foot in bounds or if a runner’s knee touched the ground before the ball got punched out by a defender, coaches are left hoping for the in-stadium broadcast team to show the desired replay on the jumbotron.
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell is hoping that can soon change.
Following the Lions’ first preseason game of the year, a reporter asked Campbell about a specific play in which a player got injured. Campbell said he had not seen the incident because, unlike reporters in the press box or fans at home, there are no instant replays available on the sidelines.
“You get a better view than I do,” Campbell told the reporter, per Michael David Smith in Pro Football Talk. “I don’t get to see all that stuff. I wish they’d just give us a monitor we can walk around with so we actually watch the game with you guys while we’re watching that game because you can’t see all the little things.”
Currently, head coaches rely on assistant coaches and staffers in the booth to relay what a replay is showing on the television broadcast. That communication often determines whether or not a coach decides to throw a challenge flag. Providing a monitor with the television broadcast for the sidelines would take some of the guesswork out of those decisions.
It’s unclear if this is something the NFL is considering, or if other coaches are also advocating for it. But Dan Campbell seems to think it’d come in handy, which likely means other coaches would as well.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.