NFL officiating has jumped the shark this season. Not only are officials throwing more flags than ever, but they are also throwing them more in the biggest moments of the game. After two officials crossed the line this week and were unprofessional toward players
, the league finally cracked down on the stripes and suspended a line judge for multiple games and a referee for one.League-wide, there’s a push and pull with officials, but in the Green Bay Packers’ case, not all of their woes can be explained
by that. Yes, the Packers are getting flagged more this year. Yes, NFL games are getting penalized more. No, the Packers are not keeping regular pace with the rest of the league. Your eyes aren’t lying to you; the Packers are getting flagged at a high rate, even during this flag inflation.
This post isn’t to complain about officiating, but rather to explain how Green Bay is losing “hidden yardage” this year. I don’t blame the refs for all of the Packers’ calls this year (though that one drive against Minnesota is still nuts to think about). This is a sloppy operation, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. With that being said, I think the offense took a pretty good step forward last week — outside of penalties and ball security. If they can just clean that up, Green Bay could be off to the races and back in the playoff conversation.
As of now, the Packers have racked up 36 flags on the road (12 per game) compared to just 6 at home for their lone home game. Those 36 road flags lead the NFL, with the Arizona Cardinals — coached by Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur’s younger brother — coming in second place with 25. On the road, when the offense has to operate in a silent count due to noise, the Packers’ offense is not playing cleanly.
Through four weeks, Green Bay ranks second in total penalties, third in total pre-snap penalties and third in net penalties. If you want to throw out Week 1 as a weird mulligan week for everyone in the sport, the Packers have still posted 18 offensive penalties (compared to just seven on defense and five on special teams).
Maybe most importantly, though, the Green Bay offense is hurting themselves on first downs, which impacts the entire offensive series, far too often. So far in 2026, the Packers have been flagged 15 times on offense on first downs, the most in the league — with 13 of those coming in the last three weeks. More than half of those (eight) came on holding calls, with four false starts being the other category where the Packers received multiple infractions.
To get the train back on the tracks, Green Bay is going to have to eliminate their 1st-and-20 and 1st-and-15 looks on offense. It’s hurting them consistently this year. It’s easier to point at a problem than to solve it, as I’m sure the Packers’ players have been instructed not to draw flags, but the team has to find a way to overcome their offensive penalties on the road. The offense’s penalty pace in road games, particularly on first downs, just cannot continue.
