If NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell gets his way, a situation like the one that arose in this season’s Panthers-Giants game would result in multiple ejections.
Goodell wants the NFL owners to adopt a rule that would result in an automatic ejection for any player who gets two personal fouls in a game. If that had been the case this season, Giants receiver Odell Beckham and Panthers cornerback Josh Norman both would have been ejected. Beckham had three personal fouls in the game, while Norman had two.
Of course, it’s entirely possible that if such a rule had been in place, the two players wouldn’t have been called for multiple personal fouls. Perhaps if the rule is adopted, a player will toe the line after getting one personal foul -- that’s the intent of the rule. Or perhaps if the rule is adopted, officials will be hesitant to throw a second personal foul flag for the same reason that officials are currently hesitant to eject players.
Beckham should have been ejected under the current rules. Perhaps what the NFL really needs is not an automatic ejection rule, but officials who feel more empowered to throw a player out of a game when necessary.
