It's about time...

[Rich]

I'd been hearing people saying they don't blow their whistles (on purpose) after plays in such a way that conveys pride in that fact. I've never understood that. Appears the CFO doesn't understand it, either:

WHISTLE: DEAD-BALL USAGE

There has been a disturbing trend in recent years in which officials fail to blow the whistle when the ball has become dead by rule. In some cases, officials have been instructed to officiate in this manner in an effort to eliminate the possibility of an inadvertent whistle.

While this is a noble goal, it has the detrimental effect that players away from the ball may legitimately may be unaware the play is over and may commit a personal foul solely due to the negligence of the official to administer the end of the play properly.

Rule 4-1-3 explicitly requires an official to blow his whistle when the ball becomes dead in his or her area of responsibility. In application, we interpret this to mean, "When an official sees the ball dead, the official must blow the whistle." Certainly there are a small number of plays in a game in which no official can see the ball dead. In those rare cases, there will be no whistle and our coaches must understand that situation. Justifiably, they do not understand when the ball carrier is tackled in front of an official, the official simply raises his hand, and a teammate of the runner is then flagged for a late knockdown.

Starting with the 2013 season, officials are directed that the covering official must blow the whistle when that official sees the ball dead. We firmly believe this will have the beneficial effect of reducing action after the play that often results in dead-ball personal fouls and engender ill will between opponents. We do not believe this will lead to more inadvertent whistles, as the following fundamental principle remains: “If you do not see the ball dead, do not blow the whistle."