KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The N.F.L. this season finally appeared to have accomplished its goal of “getting back to football” after several years of off-field scandals, from player misconduct to weekly protests during the anthem. But the league’s bounce-back season was marred during one of its most high-profile weekends, as officials in the two conference championship games made baffling, controversial calls that overshadowed otherwise thrilling matchups.
The calls — or non-calls — left legions of fans feeling their teams had been robbed of a chance to advance to the Super Bowl, and left others simply confused. Once again, the conversation Monday focused as much on the meaning of penalties like roughing the passer and pass interference — and why they were or weren’t called — as about the outcome of the games themselves.
The officiating mess may lead to even more rule changes, video reviews and coaches’ challenges. Those could make games even longer despite the league’s professed goal of cutting down stoppages. And another debate is likely to ensue about the use of technology, which sometimes fails to provide the closure it promises.
The most glaring error, the one that will be talked about for years, occurred in New Orleans, where the Saints were playing the Los Angeles Rams in the N.F.C. championship game. In the fourth quarter, with the score tied and the Saints threatening to score, Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman drilled Saints receiver Tommylee Lewis well before the ball arrived. The referees could have called penalties for pass interference or for a helmet-to-helmet hit, but they called neither. Judgment calls like pass interference are not subject to video review.
The Saints were forced to settle for a field goal, and enough time remained on the clock for the Rams to march down the field and kick a field goal that sent the game into overtime. The Rams ended up winning, 26-23.
“It was simple: They blew the call,” Saints Coach Sean Payton said after the game. He had spoken to the league office, he said, and officials there had admitted as much to him.
Even Robey-Coleman admitted that, having been beat on the play, he targeted Lewis instead of the ball and deserved to be penalized.
“I felt more than lucky; I felt blessed,” he said.
The A.F.C. championship game in Kansas City got off to a controversy-free start. But as the Chiefs were battling back from a first-half deficit against the New England Patriots, another officiating decision brought the game to a halt. The Chiefs scored a touchdown after Patriots receiver Julian Edelman appeared to have touched a punted ball that Kansas City collected and took into the end zone.
But after a lengthy video review, the referees determined that Edelman never touched the ball, even though replays suggested that it might have just barely nicked his thumbs. The Patriots ended up with the ball, but the Chiefs then intercepted Tom Brady, leading to the touchdown that briefly disappeared.
“That was a bad play, I felt awful,” Edelman said. “But you have to move on.”
Chiefs fans were also aggrieved by a roughing-the-passer call on a second-and-7 in the fourth quarter after defensive lineman Chris Jones landed a seemingly innocuous slap on Brady’s shoulder as he made a throw. But a 15-yard penalty was enforced, and the Patriots went on to score a go-ahead touchdown.
After completing a 13-play, 75-yard scoring drive in overtime, the Patriots were the ones moving on to the Super Bowl in Atlanta, where they will face the Rams.
Sunday’s games will have some fans feeling asterisks are warranted, which may overshadow positive signs for the N.F.L. Though concussions and health issues remain a simmering concern, television viewership rebounded after two years of decline, merchandise sales have jumped, and there were significantly fewer off-field controversies compared to recent years.
Much of the renewed interest comes from a bevy of young stars, like quarterback Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs, and a bunch of scoring records that fell faster than you can say “Brady to Edelman.”
“Last year, the N.F.L. got past some of their big issues, and people were back to enjoying their teams this season,” said Michael Rubin, the founder and executive chairman of Fanatics, the league’s official online retailer. “There’s a great class of new players.”
This time last season, the N.F.L. was struggling with fallout from players’ kneeling during the playing of the national anthem before games to protest racial inequality and police brutality. In addition to that, the owner of the Dallas Cowboys threatened to sue other owners to stop the commissioner’s contract from being extended. The Carolina Panthers’ owner decided to sell his team after a Sports Illustrated article detailed a culture of sexual harassment at the club.
This season was not entirely free of such controversy. There was the release of a security video showing Kareem Hunt, a star running back on the Chiefs, shoving and kicking a woman. Hunt was suspended indefinitely and then released by his team, and the league was criticized for not doing enough to punish players involved in off-field violence.
The scandal did not dominate the season the way others have in previous years, largely because the video was released toward the end of the season. By then, interest in games had already rebounded.
Rubin’s company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries. Sales of N.F.L.-licensed merchandise at Fanatics has risen by 25 percent this season — about $100 million.
Mahomes had the third-best selling jersey, after Bears linebacker Khalil Mack and Brady. Demand for his jersey was so strong there has been a backlog of orders.
Other new stars goosed sales, too. After quarterback Baker Mayfield helped Cleveland break its long losing streak, sales of Browns merchandise soared nearly 100 times compared to the same week the season before. Jerseys of two rookies, Giants running back Saquon Barkley and Cowboys linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, were also among the top 15 best-selling jerseys in the regular season.
“There’s been an influx of these young guys who have come in and done a nice job,” Chiefs Coach Andy Reid said last week. “That’s great for the game. That’s why we’re all doing it.”
These “young guys” are one reason average television viewership rose by 5 percent this season compared to a year ago. Every network, including ESPN, NBC, Fox and CBS, and every time slot — Sundays, Mondays, Thursdays — increased.
In addition, teams in major media markets including Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles made the playoffs this season.
With the Saints and Chiefs now eliminated, the Super Bowl will offer an intriguing contrast. The fourth-youngest team in the league, the Rams, who are led by a 32-year old coach, Sean McVay, will face the Patriots, veterans gunning for their sixth Super Bowl title, all while Brady, 41, has been at quarterback and Bill Belichick, 66, has coached the team.
That should make for great conversation — assuming referees don’t blow any calls.
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