2015 NFL season

The 2015 NFL League Year began on Tuesday, March 10, 2015 at 4:00 p.m. ET. On Saturday, March 7, clubs started to contact and enter into contract negotiations with the certified agents of players who became unrestricted free agents upon the expiration of their 2014 contracts at 4:00 p.m. ET on March 10.[3] On Tuesday, March 10, 2015, clubs exercised options for 2015 on all players who have option clauses in their 2014 contracts, submitted qualifying offers to their restricted free agents with expiring contracts and to whom they desire to retain a Right of First Refusal/Compensation, submitted a Minimum Salary Tender to retain exclusive negotiating rights to their players with expiring 2014 contracts and who have fewer than three accrued seasons of free agency credit, "Top-51" began, all clubs must be under the 2015 salary cap, all 2014 player contracts expired at 4:00 p.m. ET and trading period for 2015 began. (4:00 p.m. ET).[4]

Referee Bill Leavy retired after the 2014 season.[46] On May 13, 2015, the NFL promoted line judge John Hussey to the referee position.[47] In addition to Hussey's promotion to referee, the NFL hired 10 more officials, including the first full-time female official in NFL history, Sarah Thomas, who will work as a line judge,[note 1][48] as well as Walt Coleman IV, the son of referee Walt Coleman, who will work as a side judge.[49]

The following rule changes were passed for the 2015 NFL season at the owners' meeting on March 25, 2015:[50]

• Allow a certified medical trainer to call a medical time-out when a player appears disoriented or concussed. This time-out is not to be charged to the team whose player is injured, even inside the two-minute warning. The only substitution allowed is for the injured player and for a single player from the opposing team to match up.
• Making the practice of a receiver declared ineligible lining up in the slot formation illegal; ineligible receivers must line up inside the tackle box. This was in response to the New England Patriots using this tactic in the 2014–15 NFL playoffs against the Baltimore Ravens.
• Extended the restriction for peel-back blocks to include all of the offensive team instead of just those inside of the tackle box.
• Expanded the definition of a "defenseless receiver" to include intended receivers in the air during and after an interception.
• Making offensive backs who chop a defender engaged above the waist by another offensive player subject to a chop-block penalty (15 yards).
• Pushing teammates at the scrimmage line during punts or field goals is illegal.
• Expanded instant replay to include whether time should be put back on the game clock at the end of any period.
• Linebackers can now be numbered 40–49.
• The 'process' rule on making a catch while going to the ground is adjusted. A receiver will be considered to have made a catch if they "clearly establish themselves as a runner" before going to the ground. Previously a receiver had to make a 'football move'.[51]

The following changes to the extra point rules were passed for the 2015 NFL season at the owners' meeting on May 19, 2015:[52]

• The line of scrimmage for extra point tries will move to the 15-yard line from the two-yard line. Two-point conversions will still be spotted at the two-yard line.
• Defenses will be allowed to return turnovers on two-point tries or blocked or missed PAT kicks to the opposing end zone for two points, mirroring the NCAA College football rule adopted in the 1988 season. Furthermore, a one-point safety can now also be scored if either team takes possession and fumbles out of their own end zone or is tackled in it after leaving it.[53]

The following changes to game ball protocol were passed for the 2015 NFL season on July 27, 2015:[54]

• There will be increased testing, oversight and security surrounding the balls. At random games, officials will measure the PSI of 24 footballs at halftime. Two officials, instead of only the referee, will measure and record the inflation of footballs before the game. These changes were made in response to the "deflategate" scandal.

The following people associated with the NFL (or AFL) died in 2015.[55][56]

Frank Gifford

Gifford in 2009

Frank Gifford died on August 9, just a week shy of his 85th birthday. Gifford had a 12-year playing career with the New York Giants in the 1950s and 1960s. He was a 4-time All-Pro, played in eight Pro Bowls and was named to the 1950s All-Decade Team. In 1956 Gifford was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player. After his playing career Gifford transitioned to sports broadcasting, most notably joining ABC's Monday Night Football in the program's second season and serving as the broadcast's play-by-play announcer and later color commentator for the next 27 seasons. Gifford was a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame as well as the College Football Hall of Fame.[57][58]

Bednarik in 1952

Stabler in 2007

Sanders (far right) in 2007

Yepremian in 2013

St. Clair in 2009

Mara (right) in 1954

Chuck Bednarik

Chuck Bednarik died on March 31 at age 89. Bednarik was the first player selected in the 1949 NFL Draft and played linebacker and center for the Philadelphia Eagles for fourteen seasons. He won championships with the Eagles in 1949 and 1960. He was a 5-time first team All-Pro and played in eight Pro Bowls. Bednarik was selected as a member of the NFL's 75th Anniversary All-Time Two-Way Team and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1967. He was also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.[59][60]

Ken Stabler

Ken Stabler died on July 8 at age 69. Stabler had a fifteen-year NFL career as a quarterback for the Oakland Raiders, Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints in the 1970s and 1980s. He was named the league's MVP in 1974, led the Raiders to their first championship in Super Bowl XI and was a member of the 1970s All-Decade Team.[61][62]

Ed Sabol

Ed Sabol died on February 9 at age 98. Sabol founded NFL Films in 1962 where he pioneered a documentary style of capturing the game of football that many credit as a driver of the huge surge in the NFL's popularity. Sabol was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011.[63]

Charlie Sanders

Charlie Sanders died on July 2 at age 68. Sanders played tight end for the Detroit Lions for ten seasons. He was twice named first-team All-Pro, was selected for seven Pro Bowl teams and was a member of the 1970s All-Decade Team. After his playing career he continued to be involved with the Lions, first as a broadcaster and later as a coach and scout. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007.[64][65]

Garo Yepremian

Garo Yepremian died on May 15 at age 70. Yepremian had a fourteen-year career as a placekicker for four NFL teams, most notably with the Miami Dolphins of the 1970s. He was twice named a first-team All-Pro and was a member of two Pro Bowl teams as well as a 2-time Super Bowl champion. He led the league in field goal accuracy three times and was named to the 1970s All-Decade Team.[66][67]

Bob St. Clair

Bob St. Clair died on April 20 at age 84. St. Clair had an eleven-year career as an offensive tackle for the San Francisco 49ers in the 1950s and 1960s. He played in the Pro Bowl five times and was named to the 1950s All-Decade Team. St. Clair was the mayor of Daly City, California from 1958 through 1964. St. Clair was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990.[68][69][70]

Other 2015 deaths

Bill Arnsparger, Pete Athas, George Atkins, Billy Baggett, Monk Bailey, Tom Bettis, M. L. Brackett, C. O. Brocato, Curtis Brown, Doug Buffone, Bryan Caldwell, Henry Carr, Sam Cathcart, Damion Cook, John David Crow, Doug Cunningham, Willie Daniel, Jack Davis, JaJuan Dawson, Clyde Duncan, Bill Enyart, Mel Farr, Jesse Freitas, Jr., Ed Fullerton, Mike Gaechter, Jim Gaffney, Gary Glick, Ray Graves, Jimmy Gunn, Rip Hawkins, Dick Hensley, Gary Henson, Ray Hill, Gordy Holz, Marv Hubbard, Tommy Hudspeth, Kevin Hunt, Lindy Infante, Bill Jessup, Sonny Karnofsky, Bill Keating, Vince Kendrick, Mike Kostiuk, Jim LaRue, Eddie LeBaron, Dan Lewis, Jack Linn, Tom Longo, Don Looney, Ann Mara, Tommy Mason, Jim McCusker, Ralph McGill, Steve Meilinger, John Mellekas, Terdell Middleton, Ed Modzelewski, Jim Mutscheller, Ray Nagel, Joe O'Malley, John Papit, Pat Peppler, Jim Phillips, John Polonchek, Art Powell, Bob Priestley, Steve Pritko, Jethro Pugh, Mike Pyle, Lee Remmel, Adrian Robinson, William Roffler, Tyler Sash, Tom Scott, Allie Sherman, John Siegal, Joe Skibinski, J. D. Smith, Robert Sowell, Dick Stanfel, Jim Steffen, Charlie Sumner, Rich Szaro, Bob Toneff, Laverne Torczon, LaVern Torgeson, Bobby Towns, Ted Vaught, Danny Villanueva, Jerry Wilson, Dick Wood.

Training camps for the 2015 season began July 22 and continued through the end of preseason, September 3. The normal training camp window ran from late July to late August or early September. Most of the camps had rookies report first, then veterans. At that point, some teams practiced versus another organization, like the Bills practiced against the Browns this year. Teams started training camp no earlier than fifteen days before the team's first scheduled preseason game. At that point, the rosters for each team were open to 90 players. Those rosters were cut to 75 by Week 3 of preseason, and the final 53-man roster was submitted at the end of preseason.

Prior to the start of the regular season, each team played at least four exhibition games. The preseason schedule got underway with the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on Sunday evening, August 9. The Hall of Fame game is a traditional part of the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame induction weekend celebrating new Hall of Fame members. It was played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium which is located adjacent to the Hall of Fame building in Canton, Ohio. The game, which was televised in the U.S. on NBC, featured the Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers; as in previous years, each team had an inductee in the class of 2015 (Mick Tingelhoff for the Vikings, Jerome Bettis for the Steelers).[71] The 65-game preseason schedule ended on Thursday, September 3, a week before the start of the regular season, with each team having played four preseason games, except for the Steelers and Vikings, who played five games. The preliminary preseason schedule was released Thursday, April 9.

The 2015 regular season featured 256 games played out over a seventeen-week schedule which began on the Thursday night following Labor Day. Each of the league's 32 teams played a 16-game schedule with one bye week for each team scheduled between weeks four and eleven. The slate also featured seventeen games on Monday night, two of which were played at the end of the first week of the regular season. Additionally, there was no Monday Night game at the end of the final week of the regular season, the same as in previous years. There were games played on Thursday, including the opening game of the regular season on Thursday, September 10 and three games on Thanksgiving Day. The regular season concluded with a full slate of 16 games on Sunday, January 3, all of which were intra-divisional matchups, as it has been since 2010, with the Minnesota Vikings beating the Green Bay Packers on NBC Sunday Night Football

Scheduling formula

Under the NFL's scheduling formula, each team plays each of the other three teams in their own division twice (one home and one away). In addition, a team plays against all four teams in one other division within the conference, on a 3-year rotation; and one division from the opposite conference, on a 4-year rotation. Two games on a team's schedule are against the two teams in the team's own conference in the divisions the team was not set to play who finished the previous season in the same rank in their division (e.g. the team which finished first in its division the previous season would play each other team in their conference that also finished first in its respective division). The pre-set division pairings for 2015 are as follows:[72]

Highlights of the 2015 schedule include:

• NFL Kickoff Game: The 2015 season began on Thursday, September 10, 2015, with the Super Bowl XLIX champion New England Patriots hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Patriots defeated the Steelers, 28-21.
• International Series: Three games were played at Wembley Stadium in London, United Kingdom in 2015, with two games being played in back-to-back weeks for the first time.[73] The Miami Dolphins played the New York Jets on Sunday, October 4, the first ever divisional game played in the International Series.[73] The Jacksonville Jaguars then hosted the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, October 25, in the third of four consecutive home games for the Jaguars in the International Series. Finally, the Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Detroit Lions on Sunday, November 1,[73] making 2015 the Lions' second consecutive year in the International Series. All three games began at 9:30 a.m. ET.[74]
• Thanksgiving Day games: These games occurred on Thursday, November 26, 2015. For the second consecutive season, the AFC was shut out of Thanksgiving, with all six slots going to NFC teams. As usual, three consecutive games were played; the Detroit Lions hosted the Philadelphia Eagles in the early slot on Fox and the Dallas Cowboys hosted the Carolina Panthers in the middle slot on CBS; this was the Panthers' first ever Thanksgiving appearance. The Green Bay Packers hosted the Chicago Bears in the primetime game, where the Packers retired longtime quarterback Brett Favre's No. 4 jersey.
• Christmas: The Oakland Raiders hosted the San Diego Chargers at 8:25 p.m. EST (5:25 p.m. local time) on December 24, Christmas Eve. This was the second ever night game on Christmas Eve (the first was in 2007, which was also played in the Pacific Time Zone) and the first time the league has played on a Thursday Christmas Eve. The league has traditionally avoided playing night games on Christmas Eve and, in years past, moved games that would usually play on the night of Christmas Eve to another day of the week, an option the league did not exercise in 2015; no games were held on Christmas Day, which fell on a Friday, in 2015 as the NFL rarely plays games on that day of the week.

The 2015 playoffs opened with the Wild Card playoff round on the weekend of Saturday, January 9 and Sunday, January 10, 2016, with the winner of each of the games visiting the top two seeded teams in each conference. The Divisional round games were then played on the weekend of Saturday, January 16 and Sunday, January 17, 2016. The Conference championships were held on Sunday, January 24, 2016 with the AFC Championship Game and the NFC Championship Game.

The 2016 Pro Bowl was held on January 31, 2016 at the Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The game continued the "unconferenced/draft" format that was started in 2014, with Jerry Rice and Michael Irvin serving as the alumni captains. Team Irvin defeated Team Rice 49–27.

Super Bowl 50 decided the 2015 NFL Champion and was played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on Sunday, February 7, 2016. Instead of naming it Super Bowl L with Roman numerals like in previous Super Bowls, this game was marketed with the Arabic numeral "50".[2] According to Jaime Weston, the league's vice president of brand and creative, the primary reason was that the league's graphic designers had difficulty designing a suitable, aesthetically pleasing logo with only the Roman numeral "L".[2]

Some NFL-related events that made headlines in 2015 include:

Aftermath of Deflategate scandal

In May, after a lengthy investigation led by Ted Wells, the external investigator appointed by the NFL, the league levied its punishment against the Patriots in the so-called "Deflategate" scandal. The scandal stemmed from the discovery that several of the footballs used by the Patriots during the previous season's AFC championship game were not within the league's inflation guidelines. The Patriots were fined $1 million and stripped of their first-round selection in the 2016 NFL draft and their fourth-round selection in the 2017 NFL draft. Quarterback Tom Brady, who the league's report determined was likely aware of a scheme to manipulate inflation levels, was suspended for four games. Additionally, two locker room attendants employed by the Patriots were suspended indefinitely.[81]

While the team agreed not to appeal the fine and draft pick revocation, Brady appealed his suspension. League commissioner Roger Goodell heard the appeal and confirmed the sentence on July 28. Immediately upon the announcement of the appeal verdict, the league filed suit against the NFL Players Association in civil court in an effort to gain a ruling upholding the punishment.[82] Judge Richard M. Berman pushed the two sides hard to reach a settlement, but when they were unable to he ruled for Brady and the union vacating the suspension imposed by the league. Although the league appealed Judge Berman's ruling, Brady's suspension was lifted clearing the way for him to play in the season opener.[83][84]

The two Patriots employees, assistant equipment manager John Jastremski and officials locker room attendant Jim McNally, who had previously been suspended by the team were allowed by the league to be reinstated in September. As a condition for the lifting of the suspensions, neither employee is allowed to be involved with the handling or preparation of game balls.[85]

Surprising retirements of several players

A number of relatively young NFL players walked away from the game prior to the 2015 season. The San Francisco 49ers lost three potential starters as linebackers Patrick Willis and Chris Borland and offensive tackle Anthony Davis all announced their retirements. Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Jason Worilds and Tennessee Titans quarterback Jake Locker also both retired despite having yet to reach the age of 30.

Willis, who was regarded as one of the best middle linebackers in the league, played in just six games in 2014 as he dealt with a toe injury. He announced in March his decision to retire at age 30 due to the chronic nature of the foot injuries he had endured in his eight-year career.[86]

Borland led the 49ers with 107 tackles in his rookie season in 2014 despite starting just eight games after being selected in the third round of the 2014 draft. Borland cited concerns over the potential long-term impact to his brain health in continuing to play the game in announcing his retirement which he did in March just days after Willis' announcement.[87]

Davis missed four games in 2014 with his first diagnosed concussion. In announcing his retirement in June, he said that he planned to take "a year or so away from the NFL" to "allow my brain and body a chance to heal."[88]

Worilds was entering free agency after playing for the Steelers the previous five seasons. He turned down contract offers worth tens of millions of dollars in order to devote more time to his Jehovah's Witnesses faith.[89]

Locker played four years for the Titans after they made him the eighth overall selection in 2011 draft. He was a free agent when he announced that he would be retiring because he had lost "the burning desire necessary to play the game for a living."[90]

First female coach and on-field official

The 2015 season marked the hiring of the first female NFL coach and first female NFL on-field official. Jen Welter was hired by the Arizona Cardinals as a coaching intern. Welter worked with the team's inside linebackers through the off-season and pre-season.[91] Welter's internship with the Cardinals expired after the team's third preseason game on August 30.[92]

Sarah Thomas became the NFL's first female on-field official when she was hired by the league in April.[note 1] Thomas had previously become the first female to officiate a major college football game as well as the first to officiate a bowl game.[94]

Official suspended one game due to timekeeping gaffe

The NFL suspended side judge Rob Vernatchi (from Pete Morelli's crew) for Week 6 of the regular season due to a timekeeping blunder that occurred during a game the previous week. The host San Diego Chargers kicked a field goal to take a 3-point lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers with 2:56 remaining in the fourth quarter. The subsequent kickoff was a touchback, which shouldn't have resulted in any time coming off the game clock. However, when the Steelers took over on offense the scoreboard clock read 2:38. Vernatchi was responsible for keeping the official game time, but he did not notice the 18-second discrepancy. The Steelers ended up scoring a touchdown to secure a win with no time left on the clock.[95]

Referee crew demoted following questionable calls

The referee crew led by Pete Morelli had been assigned to officiate a Sunday Night Football game between the Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 13, but was reassigned to a different game (Philadelphia Eagles at New England Patriots), due to heavy criticism for questionable calls made during the previous week's Arizona Cardinals–San Francisco 49ers game. Morelli's crew drew the ire of Cardinals' head coach Bruce Arians and 49ers' safety Eric Reed, including a botched roughing-the-passer call on Cardinals' quarterback Carson Palmer that aided the Cardinals' eventual game-winning drive, as well as a missed delay-of-game penalty. Morelli's crew had previously been the subject of criticism, following a clock error during a Week 5 game — see above.[96] In addition, Morelli's crew was involved in a missed call at the end of the Jacksonville Jaguars–Baltimore Ravens game in Week 10, where they missed a false start penalty against the Jaguars before the final snap that resulted in a facemask penalty against the Ravens when time expired, allowing the Jaguars to gain 15 yards and kick the game-winning field goal.[97]

Week 1

• Tom Brady became the quarterback with the most regular season wins for a single franchise in NFL history (161 victories), breaking the record held by Brett Favre.[108]
• Marcus Mariota became the first quarterback in NFL history to gain a perfect 158.3 passer rating in his NFL debut and the first quarterback in NFL history to throw four TD passes in the first half of his NFL debut.[109] He also became the youngest quarterback to gain a perfect passer rating (21 years, 318 days) surpassing Robert Griffin III.[110]
• Brandon McManus became the second kicker in NFL history to make multiple field goals of 56 or more yards in the same game, joining Greg Zuerlein, who achieved that feat in 2012.[111]

Week 2

• Peyton Manning became the second quarterback in NFL history to reach 70,000 regular season passing yards, joining Brett Favre.[112]
• The Denver Broncos set a new NFL record for consecutive division away wins with 13, surpassing the previous record that the San Francisco 49ers set between 1987 and 1990.[113]
• The New York Giants became the first team in NFL history to start a season 0–2 while holding double digit leads in the fourth quarter in both games.[114]
• Marcus Mariota became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw six TD passes in his first two career games.[115]

Week 3

• Tom Brady became the fourth quarterback in NFL history to throw 400 touchdown passes in his career, joining Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, and Dan Marino.[116]
• Peyton Manning became the second quarterback in NFL history to reach 6,000 pass completions, joining Brett Favre.[117]
• Marcus Mariota tied the NFL record set by Mark Rypien in 1988 with eight TD passes in his first three career games.[118]
• The Atlanta Falcons became the first team in NFL history to start a season 3–0 after trailing in the fourth quarter in all three games.[119]

Week 4

• Drew Brees became the fifth quarterback in NFL history to throw 400 touchdown passes and became also the third quarterback in NFL history to reach 5,000 pass completions in his career.[116][117]
• Adam Vinatieri became the first player in NFL history to score 1,000 points with two different teams.[120]

Week 5

• The Indianapolis Colts recorded an NFL record 16th consecutive division win.[121]
• Matthew Stafford and Dan Orlovsky combined to tie an NFL record for most pass attempts by one team in a game with 70 pass attempts during the Lions' loss to the Arizona Cardinals.[122]
• Devonta Freeman became the first player in the Super Bowl era to rush for at least seven touchdowns in his first three starts to begin a career.[123]
• Antonio Gates caught his 100th receiving touchdown and became the ninth player and second tight end to reach this mark in NFL history.[124]
• Peyton Manning surpassed Brett Favre as the NFL's all-time leader in combined regular season and postseason passing yards.[125]

Week 6

• Aaron Rodgers became the fastest quarterback in NFL history to throw for 30,000 yards, needing only 3,652 attempts to reach the mark.[126]

Week 7

• Five teams (the Panthers, Packers, Broncos, Bengals, and Patriots) started the season 6–0, setting a new NFL record for most teams to start a season 6–0 or better.[127]
• Ryan Tannehill set the NFL record for consecutive completed passes with 25, completing his first 18 passes his Week 7 game and the final seven of his previous game.[128]
• Tom Brady became the fifth quarterback in NFL history to pass for over 55,000 yards.[127]

Week 8

• In a game between the New York Giants and the New Orleans Saints, the two teams combined for 13 touchdown passes, setting a new NFL record for the most combined passing touchdowns between both teams in a single game. The Saints defeated the Giants, 52–49. Drew Brees became the eighth quarterback to throw seven TD passes in a single game and Eli Manning became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw six TD passes with no interceptions but lose the game.[129] Brees also joined Ben Roethlisberger as one of only two quarterbacks in NFL history to throw for at least 500 yards in a game at least twice in a career.[130] The combined score of 101 points was, at the time, the third highest scoring game in NFL history (although it has since moved to the fourth highest scoring game). In addition, the Giants' 49 points tied the NFL record for the most points scored by a losing team (with the Houston Oilers).
• Peyton Manning tied Brett Favre for the record of most regular season career victories all-time by a starting quarterback with the Broncos' 29–10 win against the Packers with 186 wins.[131]
• Four teams started the season 7–0, setting a new NFL record.[132]

Week 9

• For the first time in NFL history, three teams (the Bengals, Patriots, and Panthers) started the same season 8–0.[133]
• The Buffalo Bills became the first team in NFL history with two 100-yard rushers (LeSean McCoy and Karlos Williams) and a 150-yard receiver (Sammy Watkins) in the same game.[134]
• Marcus Mariota became the first rookie quarterback in NFL history to have two games with four touchdowns and no interceptions.[135]

Week 10

• Peyton Manning became the NFL's all-time leader in regular season passing yards, surpassing Brett Favre.[136]
• For the first time in NFL history, six starting quarterbacks who had previously won a Super Bowl lost on the same day (Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Joe Flacco, and Russell Wilson).[137]
• Adrian Peterson tied O. J. Simpson for an NFL record sixth career game with 200+ yards rushing.[138]
• The New England Patriots set a new NFL record by scoring in 35 consecutive quarters, breaking a record previously shared by the 1999 and 2000 St. Louis Rams and the 2005 Indianapolis Colts.[139]
• The Detroit Lions' away win over the Green Bay Packers snapped the Lions' 24-game losing streak at Lambeau Field (both regular season and postseason games), which was the longest away losing streak by one NFL team against another team in NFL history.[140]

Week 12

• Tom Brady tied Dan Marino for third place on the all-time passing touchdowns list.[141]
• Travis Coons set an NFL record for most consecutive field goals made to open a career with 18.[142]

Week 13

• Stephone Anthony scored the first ever defensive two-point conversion in NFL history by returning a blocked point after touchdown attempt by Carolina Panthers kicker Graham Gano.[143]
• Larry Fitzgerald became the youngest person in NFL history to reach 1,000 career catches. Fitzgerald (32 years, 97 days old) broke the record that was held by Andre Johnson (33 years, 163 days).[144]
• Andy Dalton became the second quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 3,000 passing yards in each of their first five seasons, joining Peyton Manning.[145]
• A. J. Green joined Randy Moss as one of only two wide receivers in NFL history to have 1,000 yards in each of their first five seasons.[145]
• Jason Witten became the second tight end in NFL history to record 1,000 catches (joining Tony Gonzalez).[146]

Week 14

• Adrian Peterson scored his 100th career touchdown, making him the 13th running back to reach this mark in NFL history.[147]
• Drew Brees surpassed Dan Marino for fourth place on the NFL's all-time passing touchdowns list with two passing touchdowns.[148]
• Antonio Brown became the sixth player in NFL history to record three straight 100-catch seasons, joining Marvin Harrison, Jerry Rice, Herman Moore, Brandon Marshall, and Wes Welker.[148]
• The New England Patriots clinched the AFC East division title for the seventh straight season, tying them with the Rams franchise, which won seven straight NFC West division titles from the 1973 season through the 1979 season, for the NFL record of most consecutive division titles won by one franchise.[149]
• The Green Bay Packers became the second franchise in NFL history to record 750 total wins, including playoff victories, joining the Chicago Bears as the only teams to reach this mark.[150]
• Matthew Stafford became the fastest player to reach 25,000 yards as he reached this milestone in his 90th career game, which broke the record of 92 that was set by Dan Marino.[150]
• Russell Wilson became the first quarterback in NFL history to have at least a 138.5 QB rating in four straight games.[151]

Week 15

• Russell Wilson became the first quarterback in NFL history to have at least three touchdown passes and no interceptions in five straight games.[152]
• Cam Newton became the first player in NFL history to rush for at least 100 yards and pass for at least 300 yards with five touchdowns in a single game.[153]
• Tom Brady became the second quarterback in NFL history to throw at least 35 touchdown passes in a season four times, joining Peyton Manning.[154]
• Drew Brees became the fourth quarterback in NFL history to reach at least 60,000 regular season passing yards, joining Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, and Dan Marino. Brees became both the youngest and fastest quarterback to reach this mark in NFL history. Brees also set new NFL records for most consecutive seasons with at least 4,000 passing yards (ten straight seasons) and most regular season games with at least 300 passing yards in a career (94 games).[153]
• Antonio Brown set a new NFL record for the most receptions by any player in any three consecutive seasons in NFL history (355 receptions), breaking Marvin Harrison's record of 354 receptions during the 2000–02 seasons.[155]
• The Kansas City Chiefs became the first team in NFL history to follow up a five-game losing streak with an eight-game winning streak.[153]

Week 16

• Brandon Marshall reached 100 catches for an NFL record sixth season. He also became the first Jets player to reach 100 catches in a season.[156]
• Anquan Boldin became the 13th player in NFL history to reach 1,000 career catches.[156]
• In their loss to the St. Louis Rams, the Seattle Seahawks never gained a lead at any time, which ended their NFL record streak of 70 consecutive games (both regular season and playoff games) in which they had held a lead at any point during a game. This was the first time that the Seahawks failed to gain a lead at any point during a game since the final week of the 2011 season.[157]
• The Kansas City Chiefs became the second team since the AFL-NFL merger to clinch a playoff berth after going 1–5 over the first six games of a season, joining the 1970 Cincinnati Bengals.[158]
• Cam Newton became the first player in NFL history to throw at least 30 touchdown passes and score at least eight rushing touchdowns in a season.[156]
• Antonio Brown became the second player in NFL history to record 1,600 receiving yards in back to back seasons, joining Calvin Johnson, who accomplished the feat in 2011–12. Brown also became the second player in NFL history to record 120 catches in back to back seasons, joining Cris Carter (1994–95).[159]
• Adam Vinatieri became the third placekicker in NFL history to make 500 field goals in a career, joining Morten Andersen and Gary Anderson.[160]
• As of the end of week 16, the New Orleans Saints had surrendered 43 total passing touchdowns during the season, setting a new NFL record for most passing touchdowns surrendered during a season.[161]
• Kirk Cousins finished the season posting the highest completion percentage (74.7) in home games in NFL history, with a minimum of 100 attempts.[162]

Week 17

• Russell Wilson became the first quarterback in NFL history to have 4,000 or more passing yards, 30 or more passing touchdowns, and 500 or more rushing yards in the same season.[163]
• Antonio Brown set an NFL record of 265 receptions over the last two NFL seasons and became the first wide receiver in NFL history to record at least 1,700 yards from scrimmage in back-to-back seasons.[164]
• Frank Gore became the 15th player in NFL history to reach 12,000 career rushing yards.[165]
• Drew Brees finished the season with 4,870 passing yards, his NFL-record sixth consecutive season with at least 4,500 yards. Brees has seven career 4,500-yard passing seasons, the most in NFL history. Brees also led the league in passing for the sixth time in his career, setting an NFL record for most seasons leading the league, breaking the record of five that was shared by Sonny Jurgensen and Dan Marino.[166] In addition, Brees tied Tom Brady for third most all-time regular season passing touchdowns after Brady failed to throw a TD pass during the Patriots' loss to the Miami Dolphins.[167]
• Eleven different quarterbacks passed for 30 or more touchdowns setting an NFL single season record. The previous record was nine quarterbacks set in 2014.[168]

Divisional Round

• Tom Brady tied Adam Vinatieri for the most career postseason game appearances in NFL history (30).[169]
• Brandon McManus kicked five field goals in the Broncos' victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, tying the NFL record for most field goals made in a postseason game.[170]

Super Bowl 50

• The Denver Broncos became the fourth team to appear in eight Super Bowls, joining the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers.[171]
• Denver Broncos' head coach Gary Kubiak became the first person in NFL history to reach a Super Bowl as both a player and a head coach with the same franchise. Kubiak was John Elway's backup quarterback on the Broncos from 1983 to 1991 and saw playing time in both Super Bowl XXI and Super Bowl XXIV.[172] With Carolina Panthers' head coach Ron Rivera having previously played as a linebacker for the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XX, this game was the first ever Super Bowl in which both head coaches had formerly played in a Super Bowl themselves.[173]
• This game was the first ever Super Bowl in which both starting quarterbacks were No. 1 overall picks in an NFL draft; Peyton Manning was selected with the first overall pick in 1998 Cam Newton was selected with the first overall pick in 2011.[173] This game was also the first Super Bowl to feature the top two overall picks from the same NFL draft on opposing teams; Newton and Broncos' linebacker Von Miller were selected first and second overall, respectively, in 2011.[173]
• Peyton Manning, at age 39, became the oldest quarterback to ever start a Super Bowl, surpassing John Elway who started Super Bowl XXXIII at age 38.[173] Manning also became the first quarterback in NFL history to lead two different teams to the Super Bowl multiple times;[173] he previously led the Broncos to Super Bowl XLVIII and also led the Indianapolis Colts to both Super Bowl XLI and Super Bowl XLIV. With the Broncos' win, Manning surpassed Elway as the oldest quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl and also became the first quarterback in NFL history to lead two different teams to Super Bowl victories; he previously led the Indianapolis Colts to victory in Super Bowl XLI.
• Peyton Manning became the first quarterback in NFL history to record 200 combined regular season and postseason wins in a career. Manning surpassed Brett Favre (199) for the most combined regular season and postseason victories by a quarterback in a career.[174]

Tennessee Titans' venue renamed Nissan Stadium

The stadium in Nashville where the Tennessee Titans play their home games was renamed Nissan Stadium in an agreement with automobile manufacturer Nissan. Though financial terms remain undisclosed, the naming rights deal is expected to last for twenty years. Nissan operates two plants in Tennessee and is one of middle Tennessee's largest employers. Since 2006, the facility had been branded as "LP Field," under a naming rights agreement with Nashville-based building materials manufacturer Louisiana-Pacific. This is the third name change for the venue since its 1999 opening.[250]

Minnesota Vikings last season at TCF Bank Stadium

The Minnesota Vikings played at TCF Bank Stadium on the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis for the second straight season.[251] The Vikings arranged to play there for two years after their former home, the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, was closed 2013 season and demolished so U.S. Bank Stadium, their new stadium, could be built on the site.[252] In August, a construction worker who was working on the new stadium died in a fall from the structure's roof.[253]

NRG Stadium Convert to Turf

NRG Stadium, home of the Houston Texans, converted from a natural grass field to an artificial turf field after week 1. Despite various attempts to improve field conditions, players from both the Texans and the visiting Kansas City Chiefs complained of poor field conditions in their week 1 game. The decision to convert was made 5 days later, and the turf field was installed in time for the Texans next home game against Tampa Bay in Week 3.[254]

To mark the 50th Super Bowl, various gold-themed promotions and initiatives were held during the 2015 season, including gold-tinted logos across all NFL properties, the numbering of the 50-yard line on fields being painted in gold, sideline jackets and hats featuring gold-trimmed logos from week 7 onward, and Pro Bowl jersey designs incorporating gold numbering. Gold footballs were given to each high school that has had a player or coach appear in the Super Bowl, and "homecoming" events were held by teams at games.[268][1]

Through their first two home games, the Oakland Raiders declined to participate in the use of gold paint to mark the 50-yard line. On September 22, Sports Business Daily reported that NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy stated it was because the Oakland Athletics were still playing at the O.co Coliseum (the only stadium that is still shared by both an NFL team and a Major League Baseball team, which forces the Raiders to play on its dirt infield until the baseball season concludes), but the Coliseum's General Manager Chris Wright responded by saying that the Raiders told him not to apply the gold marks for the remaining regular season games.[269] One day later, Raiders owner Mark Davis confirmed that the gold markings would be used after the conclusion of the Athletics season, boasting that because they had appeared in five of them, "nobody respects the Super Bowl more than Raiders".[270]

After it had been leaked months before by the Packers that both teams were allowed to wear their colored jerseys for Thursday Night Football contests,[271] on October 30, 2015, the NFL announced "Color Rush," a series of four Thursday contests in which all eight teams will wear one-time, specially designed and monochromatic alternate uniforms.[272] The Carolina Panthers and Tennessee Titans wore their regular alternate uniforms (with the Panthers debuting "Carolina blue" pants), while the Dallas Cowboys revived their white "Double Star" uniforms from the mid-1990s (while debuting white pants) and the St. Louis Rams wore a gold version of their 1973–99 throwbacks for the games. The other four teams involved (Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers) wore all-new uniforms for the games. The November 12 game between the Bills and Jets was particularly problematic, with the Bills' all-red uniforms (the first time the team has ever worn a red jersey on the field) and the Jets' kelly green outfits being indistinguishable to those with color blindness.[273]

• The Cleveland Browns unveiled new uniforms on April 14, 2015. There are three jersey colors and three pants colors: orange, brown, and white, allowing for nine possible uniform combinations. The uniforms have "Cleveland" above the numbers on the front, "Browns" down the leg, and "Dawg Pound" inside the collar. The uniforms are the first in the NFL to utilize contrast stitching and chainmail/raised numbers. The city name in front and team name down the leg are also NFL firsts.[274] On February 24, the Browns slightly tweaked their logo. The orange on their helmet is brighter and the facemask, which was gray, is now brown. The team also updated their secondary logo.[275]
• The San Francisco 49ers unveiled a new black alternate uniform on May 1, 2015. The jerseys have red numerals with matching black pants. This is the first alternate uniform in the team's history.[276] In addition, the 49ers sported a helmet decal and lapel pin honoring Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bob St. Clair who died in April; the decal had St. Clair's number 79 in white inside a black football shape.[277]
• The Tennessee Titans switched their primary colored jerseys from light "Titans Blue" to navy blue, the latter of which was the team's primary home jersey color from 1999 to 2007.[278]
• The Green Bay Packers unveiled a new throwback uniform on July 28, 2015. The design features the same layout the Packers used between 1937 and 1949, and again in 1994. Like the previous 1920s-inspired throwbacks, the base colors will be brown, navy blue and yellow.[279]
• The Miami Dolphins unveiled a new throwback uniform to commemorate the team's 50th season on July 29, 2015. The uniform is a throwback to the Dolphins' inaugural season in 1966. The team also wore a patch celebrating the anniversary during the entirety of the season.[277][280]
• The Baltimore Ravens wore a patch to commemorate the team's 20th season.[277][281] On December 20, 2015, the team also unexpectedly debuted gold pants for the first time, wearing them with their regular purple jerseys against the Kansas City Chiefs. Although gold is an official accent color of the Ravens, the pants got an overwhelmingly negative response on social media by both Ravens fans and fans of other NFL teams, with some comparisons being made to the rival Pittsburgh Steelers pants.[282]
• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers wore a patch to commemorate the team's 40th season.[277][283]
• The Oakland Raiders upgraded their uniforms to incorporate Nike's "Elite 51" technology, which most teams had been using since 2012.[284]
• The New England Patriots changed the logo on their jerseys from their traditional cursive wordmark to the serif block lettering they adopted when they updated their logo in 2013.[285]
• The Philadelphia Eagles wore a helmet decal in honor of Hall of Fame center/linebacker Chuck Bednarik who died in March. The decal featured Bednarik's number 60 in white inside a black circle.[277]
• The Atlanta Falcons wore a patch recognizing the team's 50th year in the league.[277]
• The New York Giants honored the late Frank Gifford and Ann Mara by adding a number 16 helmet decal and patch for Gifford and Mara respectively.[286]

This was the second season under broadcast contracts with ESPN, CBS, Fox, and NBC. This included "cross-flexing" (switching) Sunday afternoon games between CBS and Fox before or during the season, regardless of whether the visiting team is in the AFC (which CBS normally airs) or the NFC (which is normally carried by Fox). NBC continued to air Sunday Night Football, the annual Kickoff game, and the primetime Thanksgiving game. ESPN continued carrying Monday Night Football and the Pro Bowl. Under a new eight-year deal, DirecTV continued to be the exclusive distributor of the NFL Sunday Ticket service.[287][288]

On May 12, 2015, it was announced that ABC would simulcast ESPN's wildcard game, marking the first time that ABC has broadcast any NFL game in nearly 10 years.[289] Fox also expanded its pre-game coverage by moving Fox NFL Kickoff to the main Fox network from Fox Sports 1, serving as a lead-in to Fox NFL Sunday.[290]

After its successful inaugural season under the arrangement, the NFL extended CBS's contract for Thursday Night Football into the 2015 season; as with the previous season, CBS produced all games, and the first seven games (weeks 2-7), as well as week 13, were broadcast by the CBS network. All games, including those not aired by CBS, were broadcast by NFL Network.[291] The package also included one Saturday game in Week 15 and one in Week 16, both exclusive to NFL Network

On March 23, 2015, league owners voted to, as an experiment, suspend the NFL's blackout rules for the 2015 season; no games were blacked out in their home markets because of insufficient ticket sales. These moves came after the Federal Communications Commission's September 2014 decision to stop enforcing blackout rules on terrestrial television stations, and the fact that, ultimately, no games were blacked out at all during the 2014 season.[292]

The NFL also experimented with online streaming as part of the International Series game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills. The game was streamed worldwide by Yahoo!, who handled hosting, promotion, and advertising sales for the stream, while CBS produced the telecast.[293] The game only aired on television in the team's home markets (in accordance with NFL policies), as well as in the United Kingdom on BBC Two and Sky Sports, and in China.[294] Brian Rolapp, the league's executive vice president of media, explained that the experiment was part of the NFL's efforts to attempt alternative distribution models for games, such as those that would appeal to viewers who do not subscribe to pay television.[293][295] Yahoo! was reported to have paid $15 million for the rights fees, plus an additional $2 million "marketing fee," and beat out Amazon.com, Twitter, and YouTube—some of whom had made higher bids but would have planned to place the broadcast behind a paywall, which the league resisted.[296]

The NFL entered into a social media partnership with Snapchat to present live stories with behind-the-scenes and fan perspectives from selected games.[297]