Method to his madness: Mack Hollins uses NFL rules to his advantage
Jan 15, 2025
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WROC) — Football fans see Mack Hollins as Fred Flintstone and might think, "madness."
But with Hollins, there's always a method.
"If you're going to play the game, know the rules," he said.
Hollins has made NFL rules a priority, and it's paying off. He's second-best among all receivers with at least 50 targets this year at drawing pass interference penalties.
"It's kind of like the tax system. Like, the tax system is there for people to find a way not to pay them, as terrible as that is. And there's people that don't pay them, and they make a lot of money," Hollins said. "But those rules are the same for everybody, so if you're not going to take advantage of them, it's going to take advantage of you."
Hollins studied the rulebook early in his career, but not to learn about cheating or flopping, as he said officials "won't fall for that." Rather, he earns calls through understanding.
"The rules are set are set to a certain way, then play the rules, don't be so far away from the rules that you're a disadvantage to the team," Hollins said.
The offseason is prime research time for Hollins, as he often has lunch with officials, talking through scenarios. A big key: knowing when refs are watching.
"If I get a play like this, and the third receiver is here, and he crosses with the second receiver, whose eyes go to what," Hollins said. "At gunner, especially, who's responsible for the gunner, how long are your eyes on the gunner, those things matter."
Wide receivers coach Adam Henry also gave his insight into Hollins' unique ability to draw fouls.
"Everything encompasses that, meaning that relationship, they know he's a nice guy, you know, with the names," Henry said. "But first and foremost, if the guy's not looking and he's not looking for the ball, he's at the mercy of the court."
As much as penalties matter to Hollins, they are never the goal.
"I'd much rather have the catch. Unless they're going to start giving out the yards for pass interference, I'd much rather have the catch because I probably missed out on like 200-some yards this year on pass interference alone," Hollins said. "Unfortunately in contract negotiations you can't say, 'Well those pass interference yards, what about those?'"
Henry also said that being aggressive to the ball is one of the best ways to draw flags. It's actually something he looks for first when researching receivers in the offseason on film.
He added that he's not surprised a hardworking role player like Hollins has that as part of his tool bag, stating simply, "He's made a living doing the things that no one wants to do."