The NFL, with its vast resources, should be all over this issue. We're in the age of high-tech solutions for every problem, so why does the league keep dragging its feet when it comes to accurately determining whether a team earned a first down? This is something pointed out by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
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The notion that the "human element" will always be necessary when it comes to spotting the ball after forward progress is stopped feels outdated, especially when we have access to sophisticated technology that can track ball placement with precision.
Fields' comments about forward progress seem like a dodge, and there's no reason the league can't figure out a way to marry the human element of spotting the ball with the capabilities of modern technology. It's not like we're asking them to reinvent the wheel. They're already using technology for things like goal-line cameras and tracking player movements, so why not apply it to a critical part of the game like this?
Florio nails it when he says this isn't about a lack of capability, it's about a lack of will. The NFL has the money, the people, and the tech to make this happen—it just seems like they're more comfortable sticking to the status quo rather than making the game better. Fans and players alike deserve more than just the "well, we've always done it this way" mentality, especially when the technology is already out there waiting to be used.
The longer the NFL resists embracing this kind of advancement, the more it looks like they're choosing tradition over progress, and that's a stance that's hard to defend in 2025.
