Which NFL team drew most penalties in 2022 season? Five teams that felt full wrath of refereeing decisions
Leading a category in statistics is not always a good thing, and one statistic a team in the NFL does not want to see themselves in is penalties.
Not every team benefited from referees and some were on the short end of the stick with calls this season.
While being in that category isn't ideal, it doesn't ultimately mean a team has suffered because of it. The Chiefs won the Super Bowl with a -3 turnover differential.
Four out of the top-five most penalized teams this past season had losing records, while one of them had a winning record and was a playoff team.
Out of the five teams, the top two teams had head coaching changes this off-season.
The top five teams of the 2022-2023 regular season with the most penalties
#1 - Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals top the list as they committed a league-high 118 penalties last season.
They will have a new head coach in former Eagles defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon.
Cardinals hire Jonathan Gannon as new head coach. https://t.co/3v4Rjmhc2c
Following the team's 3-5 start in their first eight games, Kliff Kingsbury addressed the team and said that penalties have been killing them.
Kingsbury said:
“That's kind of why we've been struggling this season is making these things happen during the game. It’s unusual of us to make these mistakes and that's kind of been killing us.”
#2 (Tie) - Denver Broncos
The Broncos were tied for the second-most penalties in the league last season (113), but gave up the most penalty yards with 970.
Like the Broncos, they will be entering next season with a new coach as they inked a deal with former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton.
Russell Wilson struggled in his first season with the team, and the team fired head coach Nathaniel Hackett after a 4-11 start.
#2 (Tie) - Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders were tied for the second-most peanlities last season. They tied the Broncos with 113 committed against them, but committed fewer penalty yards than them.
The team struggled under Josh McDaniel's first season as they finished the season at 6-11. They released quarterback Derek Carr this off-season and will be heading into the 2023 season with a new quarterback.
#4 (Tie) - Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are tied for fourth on the list as they were called for 111 penalties. Injuries were costly for them, as they were one of the most injury-stricken teams in the league.
They ended their season losing seven-straight and missed the chance to make the playoffs as they lost to the Jaguars in the final week of the regular season.
#4 (Tie) - Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a bit of a surprise being on this list. They were the only team on this list with a winning record last season (9-8) and snuck into the AFC playoffs as a playoff team.
They committed 111 penalties, which were tied for fourth with the Titans, but they gave up 75 less yards. The team was under their first season with Mike McDaniel as head coach and were without Tua Tagovailoa for much of the season due to injury.