Sportsnaut
When watching sports events, one common theme fanatics state is that the official working the game shouldn’t have an impact on the outcome. Yet every week, fans complain about officiating calls, especially in the NFL.
Over the years, the NFL has made several changes to how referees operate throughout a game. NFL rules are also constantly changing, making a referee’s job even more challenging.
Still, in the nearly 100 plays that take place during an NFL game, refs have to make several assessments in real time, with players running at speeds of as much as 20 miles per hour. Naturally, some things will get missed, overlooked, or mistaken.
However, according to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, the league is now trying to explore ways that Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) can help improve officiating.
Unfortunately, the commish didn’t elaborate on the types of ways the league is trying to get A.I.’s help to get the call correct on the field. Though we can imagine there are several ways that having an advanced mind could help improve the league, even if it’s just reaching a quicker conclusion that is more accurate than humans often are.
Yet, like everything with A.I., there will likely be some odd quirks that need to be worked out before the league can rely on a robot’s mind too heavily. Either way, we’re intrigued to see where the next advancement can come from in the great sport of football.
Related: NFL Report Card: Grading All 32 Teams Ahead of NFL Week 8
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