The NFL has changed what teams can show on their videoboards during field goal and extra point attempts, Mike Reiss and Adam Schefter of ESPN reported.
A memo sent to all 32 clubs Sept. 7 requires every team to display the same All-22 camera angle or the same static image for both kicking teams. The league warned that violations will result in discipline.
The change followed a viral post from a former NFL analytics coach.
Ryan Paganetti, who worked in that role for the Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars and Las Vegas Raiders, posted on X on Sept. 1. He said he had studied a decade of New England Patriots television broadcasts from Bill Belichick’s tenure as head coach, which ran from 2000 to 2023.
Paganetti said that when opposing kickers lined up, the videoboard showed a reverse All-22 view of the kick. That put a second set of offset goalposts on the screen, creating an optical illusion for the kicker.
On the 52 Patriots kicks he studied, Paganetti said, the reverse view never appeared.
His post had drawn nearly 17 million views as of this weekend.
The Patriots broke no rule. The league said New England was operating within its guidelines at the time, and other teams with videoboards behind the uprights had experimented with various approaches that were also allowed.
The previous rule was narrower. For years the NFL has required videoboards and ribbon boards to show either a static image or an All-22 view, such as the high-sideline or high-end-zone angle, during kicks. Flashing images, blinking effects and moving text or images were already banned.
Nothing in the old language required a club to treat both kicking teams the same. The Sept. 7 memo closes that gap, and the league framed the change as a matter of competitive equity.
The practice Paganetti described is no longer permitted anywhere in the league.
The memo arrived two days before the regular season opened. The Patriots began their season on the road, losing 13-10 at Seattle on Sept. 9, so their stadium has not yet hosted a game under the new standard.
That changes Sunday. New England hosts the Pittsburgh Steelers at 1 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium, its first home game under the new rule.
