Missed call that sunk Vikings will likely become a reviewable play in future

Logically, there's no reason why replay assist shouldn't be able to get that kind of call right.

Oct 24, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams linebacker Byron Young (0) tackles Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) for a safety in the second half at SoFi Stadium. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The blatant missed facemask penalty that ended Thursday night's Rams-Vikings game was not a reviewable play, but that will probably change in the coming years.

The two referees behind the end zone where Sam Darnold's facemask was grabbed didn't see it happen, crew chief Tra Blake explained after the game, so they didn't throw a flag. And because there was no penalty on the play, it's not something that could be added upon review after the fact. All scoring plays are reviewed, but that's for whether or not they were scores, not for penalties that weren't called. And while one of the things replay assist is able to help officials with is "penalty enforcement," according to the NFL rule book, that doesn't apply when no call was made on the field.

It seems like a pretty obvious fix that the league should make moving forward. It's a slippery slope if you were to allow replay officials to make judgment calls on potential penalties, but on certain obvious and objective no-calls like a missed facemask, there's no reason why the folks in New York shouldn't be able to step in and get it right.

Replay assist needs to be there to help. League has to figure that out.

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) October 25, 2024

That could theoretically happen as soon as next year at the NFL's annual meetings in March, when teams propose rule changes that are then reviewed by the competition committee and presented to the 32 owners for a vote.

"It’s likely that face mask will come up this offseason," chief NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in an email on Friday, via ProFootballTalk. "Instant replay and what plays should and should not be reviewable is part of the conversation every offseason, and it’s anticipated it will come up again. Teams may propose a rule change and there have previously been a variety of proposals on which plays or if all plays should be reviewable."

Ironically, SI's Albert Breer reported that the Rams have actually proposed that exact thing in recent years.

The irony in this missed call: The Rams sent proposals to the competition committee in each of the last 3 years to make penalties on facemasks to QBs, blows to the head and roughing the passer reviewable.

Shot down every time, and LA benefitted tonight. pic.twitter.com/zUlmMsWIFL

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) October 25, 2024

Certain types of roughing the passer and intentional grounding calls were made reviewable in a rule change this past offseason. Perhaps due to the viral nature of what took place on Thursday night, facemask calls (and non-calls) will be next.

The league can't fix what happened to the Vikings, but it should at least take action in the coming years to make sure it doesn't happen again.

By the way, Minnesota sports fans are all too familiar with rules being changed after a play that hurt their team, with the most recent example coming in the NBA in the wake of a critical, non-reviewable no-call that went against the Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals.