CFL rules tweaked just a bit for 2017
Most small changes relate to video review of penalties
After a couple of years of making significant changes to the Canadian football game, the CFL rules committee is recommending far fewer impactful tweaks in 2017.
Over the last two years, the league has introduced the ability for coaches to challenge penalty calls — or non-calls — like pass interference, illegal contact and roughing the passer.
The effects of those changes are still being felt, as the league works to get calls right while not destroying the flow of games with too many challenge flags.
This year, the rules committee is recommending status quo, for the most part.
“The game itself is in great shape,” CFL vice-president of officiating Glen Johnson said after rules committee meetings concluded at CFL Week.
“Highest scoring ever last year, highest quarterback efficiency ratings ever last year, the highest average return-on-kick ratio.
“There was a real feeling to not try to tinker too much with that. If we can stay in one spot for a little while with a lot of the rules of the game itself, I think the product will be better. Better officiating, better coaching, better playing.”
The committee did recommend some adjustments to coach’s challenges, the way some penalties are enforced, and the role of the video official.
The most significant change is something the league already implemented in the middle of last season — coaches must put a timeout at risk every time they throw a challenge flag. That move led to a 15 per cent decrease in the number of first challenge flags thrown by coaches and a 29 per cent decrease in the number of second challenge flags thrown.
It was a significant enough decrease that the rules committee didn’t believe further change was necessary.
“That was pretty critical and it was a very positive change that we made,” Johnson said.
The committee chose not to change any of the eight penalties that can be challenged by coaches. The most controversial of those last season was illegal contact on a receiver.
“One of the reasons we’re doing that is that data from last year showed us that when a coach had to put a timeout at risk, the number of illegal contact challenges went down by 50 per cent,” Johnson said.
Other changes the rules committee will recommend to the competition committee and ultimately the board of governors include:
The league is working with its broadcast partner, TSN, and plans to have every possible review of a challenge take place during a commercial. The average review took a minute and 10 seconds last year.
The league will narrow criteria related to roughing the passer calls that can be challenged.
“Last year we allowed any act of unnecessary roughness against a quarterback to be challenged,” Johnson said. “It was confusing because it went beyond the bounds of just roughing the passer.
“We’re narrowing that to the strict definition of roughing the passer, so only things that are related to the safety of the quarterback when he’s in the act of passing or he’s a potential passer, will be reviewable this year.”
The committee recommended changing the value of a penalty on a low block on kick plays and on changes of possession from 10 to 15 yards. It will now be an unnecessary roughness penalty.
The committee recommended increasing duties of the video official.