{
  "id": 12200422,
  "title": "NFL officials are calling more penalties than ever",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/nfl-officials-are-calling-more-penalties-than-ever",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-05T17:38:17.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-officials-calling-more-penalties-173817924.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "NFL officials are calling an increasing number of penalties per game, not seen since 2009, according to data from NFLPenalties.com. This season, officials are calling over 17 penalties on average, which is the highest in any year since 2009. The average game now includes 15 accepted penalties, also the highest in that time frame. Previously, the highest totals were 16.2 total flags per game and 13.7 accepted penalties per game, both in 2015. The Green Bay Packers, known for their frequent penalties, average 10.5 penalties per game. The increase is primarily due to offensive holding, false start, and delay of game penalties, which have seen the biggest increases in calls per game this season. Overall, NFL games have become more flag-heavy compared to previous years.",
  "summary": "It’s not your imagination: flags are flying like crazy.",
  "key_points": [
    "NFL officials call over 17 penalties per game on average this season.",
    "This is the highest number since 2009 according to NFLPenalties.com data.",
    "Increase is mainly due to offensive holding, false start, and delay of game penalties."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}