We are in the information era. Data influences every second of our lives. Sport has not been bypassed by the technological revolution, and companies like Zebra Technologies are bringing an incredibly detailed level of insight into every NFL play.

Those looking at www.sidelines.io sports odds will not necessarily be familiar with every rule change recommended or be aware of the remarkable amount of information that is available. Football, though, is changing at pace.

Alterations to improve player safety and prevent injuries hit the headlines. Tracking data is useful far beyond that, however, helping teams to understand what works on the field and to give the league an idea of where officiating can be improved.

Zebra attached a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip to every football, player and referee in the 2021 season. This generated around 43,000 snaps to analyze. The NFL can rewatch every movement made on the field throughout the season from out-of-place officials to the hardest hits. Of course, the kickoff and punt return rules have been under the spotlight, but the sheer quantity of this data gives the NFL the opportunity to learn more about every facet of the game.

Kickoffs have been tweaked after Zebra’s data revealed considerable head trauma. The pitch-wide chaos of punt plays has drawn concern, too.

Officials Under Scrutiny

While safety is the biggest issue the league aims to address with Zebra’s tracking data, the referees are under the metaphorical microscope, too.

The game is played at a higher pace than ever, putting more onus on the officials to keep up. With each referee tagged with a chip, the NFL can see how well each official is moving to provide the best view of a given play.

Troy Vincent, the NFL’s executive vice president of football operations, spoke about the analysis of referees during Super Bowl week.

“One of the things we’re able to look at—because they are actually being tracked as well—is: ‘Where was he or she when they made the call? Were they in the right place?’ We’re talking, pre-snap, during snap and post-snap. Was someone properly aligned? Where were they during, say, the motion of the play, or in the middle of the play, and then where the play ended? Was he or she in the right place?’

“So this is just the evolution of technology…We’ve been [tracking referees] for a few years now. It’s important. One, to make sure we’re evaluating everything. Not just where they are, but their movement in between the play. Also, Zebra allows us to [track] distance. Distance [a ref] traveled as you look at future positions whereas you identify talent that will be coming. Man, we know that back judge or the side judge or the umpire or the ref, looking at their movement, tells us what future officiating should look like, based off where the game is.”

Injury Prevention

Away from aiming to prevent concussions, the NFL can also use tracking data to look at the causes of other injuries. Coming out of Super Bowl Sunday, artificial turf was a hot topic after Odell Beckham Jr tore his ACL.

Everything from underfoot conditions to the type of cleats are recorded for injuries like Beckham’s. The nature of the contact and force of it are obviously crucial to determining the root cause for such a devastating injury.