NFL 'likely' to discuss offseason rule change to make face mask penalties reviewable | News, results, highlights, statistics and rumors

On Thursday night, NFL officials failed to notice that Los Angeles Rams linebacker Byron Young grabbed Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold's facemask while receiving a sack in the end zone and fended off a safety late in the fourth quarter. giving LA a 30-20 win.

Now comes word from Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio (after emailing NFL Vice President of Communications Brian McCarthy) that reviewing face mask penalties will “likely” be up for discussion after the season.

“Yes, it is likely that face masks will hit the market this offseason,” Brian McCarthy told Florio in an email Friday.

Florio asked McCarthy whether the league's competition committee would “review the situation” after the 2024 season.

“Immediate replay and which plays should be reviewed and which should not be reviewed is part of the discussion every offseason and is expected to come up again,” McCarthy responded.

“Teams can propose a rule change, and there have been a variety of suggestions previously about which plays or whether all plays should be reviewable.”

There was a crucial missed call on Thursday that ended the Vikings' chance to run the length of the field and make the game 28-0 before the end of regulation.

Even though the facemask grabbing occurred during a scoring game, the penalty is not appealable and the Rams emerged victorious.

Florio noted, “This change is really a no-brainer” and “there is no valid argument against it.”

A hypothetical facemask check last night would have given the Vikings the ball on 1st-and-10 on their own 20-yard line, trailing 28-20 with 1:36 left.

Minnesota still had to go 80 yards for a touchdown without a timeout (and convert a two-point conversion), but at least the Vikings had a chance.

Instead, it was game over for Minnesota as an exciting and competitive game ended with a disappointing thud.

Referee Tra Blake was closest to the game and was asked about the no-call in a pool report, according to ESPN's Kevin Seifert.

“The quarterback was facing the opposite direction of me, so I couldn’t really see it,” Blake said.

“I wasn't looking and of course I didn't see the face mask being pulled off. The referee had players between him and the quarterback, so he didn't get a look at it. He was also blocked. So, that was the thing, we didn't see it so we couldn't call it.

Of course, NFL officials can't see everything, and human error is part of the game. The easiest way to correct incidents like last night's no-call is to check face masks to give much-needed support to referees.

This is likely to be a much-discussed topic this offseason. For now, however, the Vikings have to move on from the tough loss, falling to 5-2.