Many NFL fans may not know of this, but there is a common practice done on special teams, one that is illegal. And one that the NFL is now enforcing more strictly.
According to Football Zebras, the league asked referees to watch holders closely for use of illegal objects during field goal and extra point attempts. Rule 11-4-5 of the NFL rulebook states, “no article of any type may be placed on the field, or used in any manner, to assist a player in the execution of a field goal and/or extra point try.”
The announcement came out following Dallas’ win during Wild Card weekend. Bryan Anger, Dallas’ punter/holder, used a blade of grass to mark where to place the ball. According to special teams coordinator Jim Fassel, he did not know of the rule before Anger told him.
“I hadn’t seen any memo or discussion about it,” Fassel said. “I didn’t even know about it until our holder came up to tell me what happened. Supposedly, it was emphasized all season but it’s never been brought up to me my whole career.”
Cowboys’ kicker Brett Maher missed four PATs in their win over Tampa Bay Monday night.
In addition to Dallas, teams such as Philadelphia, Detroit, and Kansas City have been known to break this rule.
Seeing Maher’s performance, it will be interesting to see if other kickers are affected during the NFL playoffs.
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