Seahawks punter Michael Dickson grew up playing Australian rules football in his hometown of Sydney, and he imported some of the kick-heavy game to Seattle on Thursday night. Dickson's third quarter punt was blocked with enough backspin to have it skittering in the open backfield. Because the ball is behind the
Author: Ben Austro and Jeremy Snyder
Ben Austro is the editor-in-chief and founder of Football Zebras and the author of So You Think You Know Football?: The Armchair Ref's Guide to the Official Rules (on sale now)
Several players change their jersey numbers after new rule passes
The NFL started to mandate position-specific jersey numbers in 1952, although it gave exceptions to "nationally known" players at the time of the new rule. As the era of free substitution began in 1949, it was necessary to identify players by number, particularly with regards to being an eligible receiver. The
The quest to be the Super Bowl home team
Throughout modern NFL history, teams scheduled to host the Super Bowl have fantasized about playing for the title in their home stadium. For the first 54 Super Bowls, that remained a fantasy. The Buccaneers reversed that drought, advancing to Super Bowl LV after the 2020 season. The following season, the Rams
How the 2021 Draft order is determined
The NFL Draft order is determined by a combination of regular season records, postseason performance, and the strength of schedule in the 2020 season. The Super Bowl winner is 32, the Super Bowl loser is 31. Next, the remaining teams are assigned to 4 groups based on their playoff performance: losers of
History of NFL rescheduled, relocated, and canceled games
Ejections for the 2020 season
A running list of players ejected in the 2020 season. Week Game Player Pos Team Reason Time Referee 1. 1 CHI-DET Jamie Collins LB DET Contact with referee demonstrating hit 11:26/1Q Kemp 2. TEN-DEN Rashaan Evans LB TEN Throwing a punch 1:07/1Q Novak 3. 2 HOU-BAL Ross Blacklock DT HOU Throwing a punch 4:51/4Q Corrente 4. SEA-NE Quandre Diggs FS SEA Use of the helmet 0:54/1Q Wrolstad 5. 3 JAX-MIA Cam Robinson LT JAX Contact with official 4:16/3Q Allen 6. 4 HOU-MIN Harrison Smith S MIN Hit on a defenseless receiver 1:13/2Q Rogers 7. 5 HOU-JAX Josh Jones S JAX Hit on a defenseless receiver 13:07/3Q Vinovich 8. 7 WAS-DAL Jonathan Bostic LB WAS Helmet-to-helmet contact on sliding QB 6:32/3Q Torbert 9. LV-TB Gabe Jackson RG LV Fighting 4:18/3Q Novak 10. 8 CAR-ATL Charles Harris DE ATL Hit to head of downed QB 4:26/3Q Hochuli 11. BAL-PIT Matthew
How the 2020 Draft order is determined
The NFL Draft order is determined by a combination of regular season records, postseason performance, and the strength of schedule in the 2019 season. The Super Bowl winner is 32, the Super Bowl loser is 31. Next, assign the remaining teams in 4 groups based on their playoff performance: losers of the
NFL drives of 110 yards or more
Ejections for the 2019 NFL season
A running list of players ejected in the 2019 season. Week Game Player Pos Team Reason Time Referee 1. PRE 1 DAL-SF Adrian Colbert S SF Use of the helmet 3:42/3Q Cheffers† 2. CIN-KC D'Montre Wade DB KC Helmet-to-helmet contact (video) 11:37/3Q Wrolstad 3. PRE 2 SEA-MIN Holton Hill CB MIN Helmet-to-helmet contact on sliding QB 3:53/4Q Boger† 4. DAL-LAR Troy Reeder LB LAR Hit to helmet of sliding QB (video) 3:25/3Q Hussey 5. 1 KC-JAX Myles Jack LB JAX Punching 8:57/2Q Cheffers 6. TEN-CLE Greg Robinson LT CLE Kicking 5:03/2Q Allen† 7. SF-TB Kwon Alexander LB SF Helmet-to-helmet contact on sliding QB 1:02/1Q Kemp 8. 3 MIA-DAL Xavien Howard CB MIA Unnecessary roughness 4:00/4Q Hill 9. CIN-BUF Bobby Hart T CIN Contact with an official 0:20/4Q Blakeman 10. 4 OAK-IND Vontaze Burfict*12 LB OAK Use of the helmet 11:42/2Q Novak† 11. 5 NO-TB Carlton Davis CB TB Hit on
How the 2019 NFL Draft order is determined
The NFL Draft order is determined by a combination of regular season records, postseason performance, and the strength of schedule in the 2018 season. The Super Bowl winner is 32, the Super Bowl loser is 31. Next, assign the remaining teams in 4 groups based on their playoff performance: losers of the