betED.com - The View from the Couch - by Gavin McDougald!
Nov 18th, 2008 - When in doubt... punt
Back in the 90's my sister laughed when I told her I'd been hired to be a sports writer - and not just because of that nasty 'can't spell to save my life' thing. No, it was because she couldn't stand sports and the thought anyone earning a living off such silliness was simply hilarious.
Then she joined an NFL pool at her work.
Suddenly I became 'cool.'
Such is the impact of wagering on the NFL. Forget the great plays, the hitting, the tailgating and all that goes with the great game of football, everyone knows it is the wagering that made the NFL what it is today. So, you'd wonder why the NFL would screw with their No.1 marketing scheme like they do.
Sure, it's understandable why they put on the holier than thou pose when it comes to America's real pastime. They're afraid of being associated with the leg breakers and the organized crime guys who have theoretically tried to influence the outcome of games in the past.
However, what happens when the perpetrators of those nefarious deeds are their own officials?
Take, for example, Sunday afternoon and the Steelers (and I did by the way - and I'm still pissed thus this column).
Down by one point, San Diego had the ball on their own 21 yard-line with only 5 seconds remaining on the clock. It had 'Hail Mary' written all over it, but instead they went for the trick play under the defense with QB Philip Rivers throwing a short pass to running back LaDainian Tomlinson. Tomlinson then threw the ball to wide receiver Chris Chambers. Chambers, who was clearly out of ideas, tried a lateral, but it was batted away by Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu, who picked up his own tip and ran it into the end zone.
Touchdown - and miracle of miracles, the five-point spread was beaten. Time to crack a beer and virtually count some money! But wait - the officials were consulting, and what's this?
They're reviewing the play? Pittsburgh's seven-point lead suddenly went back to one after the Zebras decided one of the tosses was forward.
Except none were, and besides that, no penalty flag was thrown on the play therefore no review should have taken place at all. The extra point should have been kicked and the final score would have been recorded as 18-10.
On Monday the league admitted the gaff, yet they decided that the final score of the game would not change.
Fabulous.
It is patently clear that the only reason they would keep it at the wrong tally is to save face and not have to acknowledge the importance of betting on their games. Instead, they chose to stiff those who had actually won on the Steelers victory, thus making them losers - even though they really weren't.
Fair? Nope. Hypocritical? Yup. The fact is, the NFL is in the wagering business themselves. NFL.com has one of the top fantasy football products out there and features articles from their in-house fantasy football guru, whose one and only job is to provide tips to the NFL fantasy players.
These aren't tips on saving energy or on home improvements - they are tips on betting on football.
If you were watching the broadcast, you may have noticed how scrupulously Jim Nance and Phil Simms avoided mentioning the screw up and how it affected not the outcome of the game, but the result of many a bet. Which is ironic again because CBS is also in the racket with their own fantasy football site.
The argument the NFL types use is that point spread wagering and fantasy football are two different animals because one involves money changing hands and the other one does not. Which is fine in theory, but the reality is there are basically zero fantasy football leagues that don't require an entrance fee and have some sort of monetary prize dished out to the winners are season's end.
This is the NFL having it both ways - and when it comes to the wagering - you'd better do it with them or not at all.
By the way, after the game ended I called my sister to see if she was as steamed as I was, and if the NFL had lost her as a fan over this debacle.
She'd taken San Diego - so as far as she was concerned - the NFL?
It rocks.
Cheers ? Gavin McDougald - AKA Couch
Get all the latest NFL lines at betED.com
Nov 18th, 2008 - When in doubt... punt
Back in the 90's my sister laughed when I told her I'd been hired to be a sports writer - and not just because of that nasty 'can't spell to save my life' thing. No, it was because she couldn't stand sports and the thought anyone earning a living off such silliness was simply hilarious.
Then she joined an NFL pool at her work.
Suddenly I became 'cool.'
Such is the impact of wagering on the NFL. Forget the great plays, the hitting, the tailgating and all that goes with the great game of football, everyone knows it is the wagering that made the NFL what it is today. So, you'd wonder why the NFL would screw with their No.1 marketing scheme like they do.
Sure, it's understandable why they put on the holier than thou pose when it comes to America's real pastime. They're afraid of being associated with the leg breakers and the organized crime guys who have theoretically tried to influence the outcome of games in the past.
However, what happens when the perpetrators of those nefarious deeds are their own officials?
Take, for example, Sunday afternoon and the Steelers (and I did by the way - and I'm still pissed thus this column).
Down by one point, San Diego had the ball on their own 21 yard-line with only 5 seconds remaining on the clock. It had 'Hail Mary' written all over it, but instead they went for the trick play under the defense with QB Philip Rivers throwing a short pass to running back LaDainian Tomlinson. Tomlinson then threw the ball to wide receiver Chris Chambers. Chambers, who was clearly out of ideas, tried a lateral, but it was batted away by Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu, who picked up his own tip and ran it into the end zone.
Touchdown - and miracle of miracles, the five-point spread was beaten. Time to crack a beer and virtually count some money! But wait - the officials were consulting, and what's this?
They're reviewing the play? Pittsburgh's seven-point lead suddenly went back to one after the Zebras decided one of the tosses was forward.
Except none were, and besides that, no penalty flag was thrown on the play therefore no review should have taken place at all. The extra point should have been kicked and the final score would have been recorded as 18-10.
On Monday the league admitted the gaff, yet they decided that the final score of the game would not change.
Fabulous.
It is patently clear that the only reason they would keep it at the wrong tally is to save face and not have to acknowledge the importance of betting on their games. Instead, they chose to stiff those who had actually won on the Steelers victory, thus making them losers - even though they really weren't.
Fair? Nope. Hypocritical? Yup. The fact is, the NFL is in the wagering business themselves. NFL.com has one of the top fantasy football products out there and features articles from their in-house fantasy football guru, whose one and only job is to provide tips to the NFL fantasy players.
These aren't tips on saving energy or on home improvements - they are tips on betting on football.
If you were watching the broadcast, you may have noticed how scrupulously Jim Nance and Phil Simms avoided mentioning the screw up and how it affected not the outcome of the game, but the result of many a bet. Which is ironic again because CBS is also in the racket with their own fantasy football site.
The argument the NFL types use is that point spread wagering and fantasy football are two different animals because one involves money changing hands and the other one does not. Which is fine in theory, but the reality is there are basically zero fantasy football leagues that don't require an entrance fee and have some sort of monetary prize dished out to the winners are season's end.
This is the NFL having it both ways - and when it comes to the wagering - you'd better do it with them or not at all.
By the way, after the game ended I called my sister to see if she was as steamed as I was, and if the NFL had lost her as a fan over this debacle.
She'd taken San Diego - so as far as she was concerned - the NFL?
It rocks.
Cheers ? Gavin McDougald - AKA Couch
Get all the latest NFL lines at betED.com
