NEW YORK (AP) — NFL teams used to take Polaroid pictures of plays from atop the stadium during games then send them down to the field on a rope.

Technology improved so that an automated camera could deliver the images to a printer on the sideline, creating that familiar sight of a quarterback staring at a sheet of paper to figure out what went wrong on an interception.

That was still the case last season, when fans in the stands could watch highlights on their smartphones, but players and coaches were flipping through three-ring binders of black-and-white photos.

The NFL sideline is finally catching up.

Sort of.

Tablets were allowed for the first time starting with Sunday’s Hall of Fame game, though they won’t exactly be running the most cutting-edge apps. The devices will replicate the old system of transmitting still photos to the field — but faster, clearer and in color.

No surfing the Web. No selfies or tweets. And more important from a football standpoint: no watching replays of the last snap.

The NFL signed a sponsorship deal with Microsoft last year, which includes the standard promotions of sticking the league’s logo on products and a more sophisticated collaboration of making NFL content available on Xbox.

The tablets will be locked in a temperature-controlled cart by the NFL during the week. They’ll operate on a secure wireless network in stadiums.



Giants rally late to beat
Bills in HOF Game

CANTON, Ohio (AP) — Rookie Andre Williams scored on a 3-yard run in the New York Giants’ 17-13 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night in the preseason-opening Hall of Fame Game.

Rookie receiver Corey Washington secured the win with a 73-yard touchdown catch up the right sideline from Ryan Nassib with 13:17 left. Williams provided the Giants’ ground game some punch with David Wilson sidelined by a second neck injury in less than a year. Williams had seven carries for 48 yards, filling the No. 2 spot behind newly acquired starter Rashad Jennings.

Bills backup quarterback Jeff Tuel hit Robert Woods with a 2-yard touchdown pass. Giants starter Eli Manning went 6 of 7 for 43 yards, but lost a fumble.