What’s the talk of the NFL sideline today? It’s not a certain quarterback’s love of a certain dirty word. In fact, the talk isn’t even about a human being. The talk is about how technology is changing NFL sidelines.
That technology is the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 Tablet, and they’re used by all 32 teams. They have to be weatherproof because, rain, sleet or snow, pro football will be played. They’re no games, no social media, no radio on these tablets. There’s simply used for coaching techniques and coaching techniques only. They’re two cameras to help make play calls. One aims at the line of scrimmage, (where a play starts) and the other shoots the whole field so coaches watch the play unfold. These images used to come out on paper printed on special printers. But with the Surface Pro 2, these images go directly to the tablet. Needless to say, this saves a ton of paperwork and waiting time for printers. Coaches can review and save images. And according to reports, the tablets did hold up the most extreme of weather conditions. And if that isn’t enough, NFL players are using RFID technology to track players and study their exact movements on the surface tab.
I’m a big NFL fan (I’m not telling you what team. I want to keep this blog civil.). And I’ve noticed these surface tablets on sidelines. Does it make games or teams any better? I can’t answer that. But I do see a concern or two. I’m definitely not a fan of RFID tracking players around, even if it is just on the field. Whose to stop them from tracking them off the field and invading their privacy? And whose to stop them from imposing that on the rest of us? So it’s good that it makes the game cleaner and run smoother, isn’t their room for improvements?