You may have heard the saying, ‘One who can’t play, coach.’ You may have never heard that — and will never hear — from an NFL head coach, though.
Imagine making instantaneous decisions on both ends of the ball while trying to keep up with the play that just happened and is about to happen amid the pressure to remember every play for your team. An NFL coach’s job is not easy. Then comes the burden of a one-time coach’s challenge.

If you get it right, you’re safe. If not, you lose a timeout that the team could have used another time during the game. To help with the ‘sideline sport’ that the head coaches play, the league recently tweaked one of its existing rules to spread out that pressure. Needless to say, we have enough proof to show why this is a good change. But more than the change itself, the way the league came to that final decision is getting attention.

Rule 15, Section 1, Article 1(a) now reads: “The head coach or head coach’s pregame challenge designee can initiate a challenge by throwing a red flag onto the field of play before the next legal snap or kick.”

The old system could hurt teams because only the head coach could throw the challenge flag, even while juggling everything on the sideline, making the possibility of a rushed decision very likely. In 2025, NFL teams used the challenge flag 151 times, the most since 2019. However, now, a coach can name another staff member to throw the red flag. Of course, there are two conditions…

First, the coach will have to inform the officials about this person ahead of the game. And second, as it was earlier, only one person on the team can call the challenge. This means, if the coach assigns someone else as the challenger, the head coach — more optically than theoretically — loses the power. The head coaches have an upper hand, though.

They may or may not choose to opt for this rule, keeping the power to call challenges with themselves. If they do, it would be understandable since, even to date, the head coaches have been relying on the data and opinions from their staff members to throw the flag. However, given the history, it’d be better if they chose otherwise.

• New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll once threw the challenge flag to make his point, in vain…
  In the Week 8 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles last season, Daboll made an emotion-based challenge. The Eagles prepared for their signature tush push play on a 4th-and-1 in the second quarter. Just as Jalen Hurts ran forward, Giants edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux stripped the ball from his hands for a fumble. But seconds later, what seemed to be a turnover for the Eagles turned into a first down.
  They eventually scored on that drive but not before Daboll had some understandable drama to cause.
  The referees told Daboll that the play was called dead already, and because Hurts had forward progress, the team was given a first down. But making matters worse, Daboll threw his red flag to challenge that call in a fit of anger just to prove a point, really. Needless to say, it didn’t work in his favor.
  The Giants lost their timeout and the ability to challenge another call. This was just one of many times that the head coach loses his patience and makes decisions that he probably should not. This wasn’t Daboll’s only display of wrong challenge decisions.
• Brian Daboll once lost a timeout because he rushed his decision:
  Against the Dallas Cowboys in 2023, Daboll threw the flag too quickly after a Brandin Cooks catch. While he tried to take it back, the Giants had to use a timeout.
  One mistake came from emotion, the other from rushing the decision. Even so, Daboll was effective overall, going 10-for-14 on challenges last season for a 71.4% success rate.
• Dan Campbell’s case exposed a different weakness in the old rule:
  In Detroit’s 2025 game against the LA Rams, he challenged the spot after a 23-yard Colby Parkinson catch, arguing Parkinson was down at the 4-yard line. Campbell was right, and officials later corrected the spot, but the play was not challengeable because it did not affect the line to gain. Detroit still lost a timeout.
  Unlike Daboll, Campbell’s mistake was not about emotion or timing. It was about knowing whether the ruling was actually reviewable, which is another reason a designated replay staffer could help.

Interestingly, this change did not come out during the league’s annual meeting, where it takes votes from all 32 teams’ owners. Instead of taking votes from the team owners as it usually would, the league classified the move as an administrative modification, which allowed the league to add it to the rulebook without going through the normal owner-approval process.

The NFL viewed it as a procedural change because it did not alter what can be challenged, how many challenges a team gets, or the penalty for losing one. It only changed who is allowed to throw the red flag. And it makes many such changes ahead of every season while reviewing its rulebook. The challenge system is not the only area the NFL is adjusting for 2026.

Other rule changes that you can expect in 2026

The NFL introduced its “dynamic” kickoff in 2024 and added rules limiting onside kicks. At that time, teams had to announce the onside kick before the play, and only a team that was losing in the fourth quarter could try it. In 2025, the NFL made it easier by allowing teams to try an onside kick at any point in the game, but the team still had to be behind. For 2026, they have amended the rule further.

Now, the NFL has removed that final restriction. Teams can attempt an onside kick at any time, whether they are winning, losing, or tied.

The NFL also changed where the ball is placed after a kickoff goes into the end zone for a touchback when the kickoff starts at the 50-yard line. The league also changed where players on the receiving team can line up during kickoffs.

The NFL also gave league officials more power to help with possible disqualifications. League personnel believe a player may have done something that should lead to a disqualification. If referees already call a serious foul, league officials can tell them to eject the player. Even if referees miss the foul, league officials can still bring it to their attention if they have clear video evidence. They must do this before the next play starts.

The NFL made several rule changes for the 2026 season. These changes give officials more freedom to handle situations during games, help them deal with serious fouls, and give teams more choices on special teams.

This new set of rules will be in action as the Seattle Seahawks take on the New England Patriots in a Super Bowl rematch to kick off the 2026 NFL season on September 10.