Dean Blandino, NFL VP of Officiating, Talks Protocols, Rules for 2015-16 Season

NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino knows that his job is all about evolution and making the sport of football more consistent with everything from the handling of footballs before a game to what constitutes a catch. 

During an interview with the Toronto Sun's John Kryk, Blandino touched on a variety of topics, starting with how the NFL is progressing with changes to protocol stemming from the Deflategate scandal that happened with the New England Patriots:

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We’re still in the process of reviewing the protocol, and there are a lot of things to consider. There will be some changes, but we’ll communicate that to the clubs as we get closer to training camp, and then obviously make that available to the media as well. I would expect some changes in terms of how we handle the footballs prior to the game, and reporting PSI levels and things like that.

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In terms of the timeframe officials used to look at footballs during the AFC Championship Game between the Patriots and Indianapolis Colts, ESPN's Chris Mortensen (h/t SportsCenter) reported in January that balls were "properly inspected and approved two hours and 15 minutes before kickoff."

NFL.com's Ian Rapoport noted in February that 11 of the Patriots' 12 footballs used in the game were below the minimum required 12.5 PSI, with many of them "a few ticks under the minimum." That scandal has led to a four-game suspension for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who is still awaiting word on his appeal. 

Blandino also said the NFL gets complaints from teams about possible rules violations routinely during the season. 

“Most of the time it revolves around things on the field—schemes, tactics, techniques,” Blandino said. “If it’s a valid concern, we put a video together and we make sure that the crew working that game has that video and is aware of that issue. That happens every week.”

As far as how the NFL addresses complaints to the accused teams, Blandino says the league will look at tape and make them aware of it if there is a legitimate issue. 

Another controversy that came up in the postseason was the process of a catch, stemming from Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant's leaping grab against the Green Bay Packers that was deemed an incomplete pass after a review. 

Blandino has talked about the rule this offseason, notably in March, after the NFL made slight changes to the wording of what constitutes a catch and what makes an incomplete pass, per Conor Orr of NFL.com: 

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In order to complete a catch, the receiver has to have control, both feet on the ground, and he has to have it after that long enough to clearly establish himself as a runner. This would fall directly in line with our defenseless player rule, where we say a receiver is protected until he can clearly establish himself as a runner.

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Rather than changing the rule—or getting rid of it—Blandino told Kryk that new wording still rewards a wide receiver who is able to make a great catch and finish it all the way through instead of having some cases where it leads to a potential turnover.

“You’d be penalizing the receiver for a great effort, and now his team doesn’t even have the football anymore, so that definitely is a concern," Blandino said. 

Those were the two major topics of the discussion, though Blandino also reiterated the league will be experimenting with eight-person official crews starting in Week 2 during the preseason just to get an extra set of eyes in potential blind spots. 

The footballs and how they are handled before games is the big topic of discussion for NFL rules right now, because of everything that's transpired with the Patriots in the six months since the issue was first brought to light. 

Being able to change is essential for any sports league, especially one where the action happens as fast as it does in the NFL. Blandino clearly sees areas for the NFL to improve in certain areas, and the league has stepped up its efforts fix certain problems. 

There will never be 100 percent agreement among teams, players and fans about rules and enforcement, but as long as there is harmony, everything will be fine once regular-season games start in September.