Just last offseason, the coaches and owners in the NFL agreed upon a rule that would allow pass interference calls to be challenged. However, after a failed attempt to have success with it, the NFL is eliminating the pass interference replay rule just one year after amending it.
Of course, the rule was created after officials failed to call pass interference in the 2018 NFC Championship Game. In a game between the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Rams, there was an obvious pass interference penalty that should've been made.
On the infamous play, Nickell Robey-Coleman delivered a hit to Tommylee Lewis before the ball arrived. While there should have been a flag, the officials decided to let the game continue.
As a result, the Saints' Sean Payton and other coaches pushed for a way to prevent that from happening again. Following some discussions on rule changes, the NFL decided to give coaches a chance to challenge pass interference penalties. On the other hand, they could also challenge plays that they believe a referee missed a pass interference call.
Despite the league's effort to fix the issue, there were still calls being missed. Therefore, the league doesn't believe it's worth keeping around for another season. John Parry, ESPN's officiating analyst commented on the NFL's choice to rid of the pass interference replay:
“At the end of the day,” Parry said, “the NFL does not have a safety net to fix a game-changing egregious miss heading into the 2020 season. That can't be in today's world.”
Regardless of what the league tries to do, it will be tough to assure that no mistakes are being made by officials. At the least, the NFL can say they attempted to address a glaring issue despite the rule crumbling in a year.
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