Anthony Locicero, Associate editor02.04.21
RFID specialist Zebra Technologies is in its seventh season as the Official On-Field Player-Tracking Provider of the National Football League (NFL).
This past season, Zebra placed two RFID tags in the shoulder pads of each player, tagging almost 3,000 players in total, according to John Pollard, VP of Business Development for Zebra Sports.
To enable the data collection, Zebra attaches RFID tags to player equipment and footballs, transmitting real-time location data to receivers positioned around the stadium that gather metrics such as player speed, distance traveled, orientation and acceleration.
More than 20,000 footballs used in games and by teams at their practice facilities were equipped with an RFID tag , Pollard said, to “track things like rotational information and velocity of the ball.”
The RFID tags are about the diameter of a nickel – and about as thick as two five-cent pieces on top of each other, Pollard previously told Printed Electronics Now, adding that
the tags comprise less than 1% of the football's weight and are also located in pylons and yardsticks.
According to Pollard, receiver boxes are installed around the perimeter of the 32 NFL stadiums – boxes were recently added to two of the league’s newest venues, SoFi Stadium (home of the Los Angeles
Rams and Los Angeles Chargers) and Allegiant Stadium (home of the Las Vegas Raiders). "Those receiver boxes are able to read signals that are transmitted from nickel-sized chips that we place inside the shoulder pads of a player," he told host Greg Larnerd during a roughly 25-minute interview with ESPN 1420 AM’s “The Word with G” in 2018.
Ten NFL teams are using Zebra technology at practice and training facilities to “track player participation, development and performance,” Pollard said. Five of those clients, he added, were playoff teams.
The information that Zebra’s technology tracks powers the NFL’s Next Gen Stats.
On Feb. 3, Zebra held a pre-Super Bowl LV press conference to share notable tracking data from the 2020-21 NFL season and contextualize the Super Bowl matchup – quarterback Tom Brady’s 10th – with advanced statistics from both Kansas City Chiefs (16-2) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (14-5).
“It increases competitiveness on the field,” NFL Executive VP of Football Operations Troy Vincent said of the technology. “It’s really a chess match.”
This technology, Vincent, who played in the NFL for 16 years, said, allows opponents to study each other.
While he now embraces the Next Gen Stats, it took him a while to warm up to it.
“As a traditionalist, I was very skeptical,” said Vincent, 50, a five-time Pro Bowl selection.
He was a rookie for the Miami Dolphins in 1992, having been drafted No. 7 overall in the NFL Draft out of the University of Wisconsin.
“I [came up] in the era of beta, VHS, DVD and the way you evaluated and did your… scouting, it was watching a lot of video,” said Vincent, who played for four teams – most notably the Philadelphia Eagles – during his tenure.
As a defensive back, he would take notes on opposing wide receivers.
“Where’s the player lining up – inside the numbers? Outside the numbers? What route is he commonly running?” Vincent recalled. “I was spending an additional 40, almost 50 hours on a week on film study.”
Zebra’s technology, he said, cuts that learning curve in half.
“I was a skeptic,” he added. “But I’m a huge fan today.”
Current NFL linebacker Brandon Copeland is also a Next Gen Stats devotee.
“I started understanding the tracking data that would tell me how many yards I’ve ran, how fast I was running, how fast my competition was running,” said Copeland, 29, who plays for the New England Patriots. “Those things have definitely been pivotal, not only in my experience as a player but in my recovery routine.
“It’s also fun for guys to talk about who’s faster,” he added. “You can’t hide from those real numbers.”
Other applications
The NFL is finding other ways to use the data it's collecting, Vincent noted.
"We use Zebra's technology as we evaluate and assess playing rules," the EVP of Football Ops said, adding that kickoff and kickoff return rules were modified due to data gathered by Zebra's technology.
"We use Zebra's technology as we evaluate and assess playing rules," the EVP of Football Ops said, adding that kickoff and kickoff return rules were modified due to data gathered by Zebra's technology.
"The health and safety side – that's the future," Vincent emphasized. "Making sure that we're protecting players from unnecessary risks."
NFL officials are also tracked, Vincent noted.
"Pre-snap is what I look at. Pre-snap alignment. Post-snap alignment," he said. "'Are they in the right place? How long is it taking them to get [into] position? How far did they run?"
Eye-popping stats
Kansas City wide receiver Mecole Hardman recorded the top speed during the 2020 playoffs, reaching 21.52 mph on a 50-yard rushing touchdown vs. the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship game.
Fellow Chiefs wideout Tyreek Hill leads the league in most plays of 20+ mph. He hit 20.76 mph – the third-fastest speed during the postseason – on a 71-yard touchdown against Buffalo.
During the regular season, he ran 21.91 mph on a 44-yard score against the Dolphins.
The fastest player during the 2020 season? San Francisco 49ers running back Raheem Mostert. The 5-foot-10, 197-pound Mostert scorched New York Jets defenders, running 23.09 mph to score an 80-yard TD. His 22.73 mph catch and run against the Arizona Cardinals was the second-fastest speed recorded this past season.
