Refs determine outcome again

[twofingers]

NFL needs to stop turning a blind eye to the referee situation and do something before they totally ruin what was a great game.

1. Pass interference continues to be a coin flip every time a ball is thrown downfield. How the refs interpret this rule is a mystery. A bad PI call tonite turned the game around giving the packs a TD before half time that they did not deserve. Maybe it is time to go to college rule and make it a 15 yard penalty. This call is made so inconsistently and is unfair to a defensive player. A DB can blow in a receivers ear and get a flag but a receiver can assualt a DB in a potential interception situation and get away with nothing.

Some defensive interference are obvious, like when a DB is burned and has to tackle or hold guy to prevent the long gain. These are deserving of receiving the yardage that would have been gained. Most of the time though the DB attempt is to make a play on the ball and incidental contact occurs. The DB can be in great postion, making a sincere attempt to go after the FOOTBALL and make a DEFENSIVE PLAY but is penalized. To often the penalty is grossly out of proportion to the offense that occured and can change the flow of the game.

2. I can no longer watch baseball because of the length of games and football is getting very close to losing me also. it was 11 pm here on the east coast before the game got to halftime last night. Almost 2 hours to play 30 minutes of football. That is outrageous. The reason why? Damn refs throwing flags every other down and them having to huddle up and discuss each one. They have become to self important feeling that they are an integral part of the game and therefore have to justify their existance by making their presense known by tossing yellow hankies all over the place.
Has anyone researched the average number of penalties called in a game in the 70's as compared to now? I bet it has risen dramatically. I can recalled raider-Chief games in the 70's that were virtual bloodbaths and they were always finished in under three hours.

I love this game and hate seeing it destroyed. College football can be much more entertaining becase they allow the natural flow of the game to occur. I hope the NFL wakes up and tells the refs to get in the backseat and shut up. it is a long enough ride to grandma's house without having to listen to them the whole way there.

 

[tt boy]

just fricken pathetic!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Nolan Dalla]

Great post!

I'm glad to see more and more fans/bettors getting disgusted about this. It's gone beyond just anger for me. Just when I think I've seen the worst possible officiating, something like last night comes up and shocks the living hell out me.

Think of it this way -- in the LAST THREE Monday Night Football games, officials have played a key (if not fateful) role in determining the final outcome of the game. Is this what fans wnat? The quality of officiating was so dreadful in all three games, that fans can no longer trust the judgment of these buffoons. No other sport or league is burdened with such incompetence. Can you imagine -- the NFL, the most popular sport of all -- has this quality of officials doing the games?

Look at the last three MNF games:

-- TENN/BALT: Several horrendous calls were made, especially late in the fourth quarter. This game all boiled down to one final repeat of a down for TENN at the goal line with no time left, because officials couldn't decide what to do when they were out of place and TENN was trying to snap the ball.

-- STL-TAMPA: Officials completely blew the Tampa player stepping out of bounds at the five yard line in the 4th quarter. That score meant the Rams were down by 7 points instead of 3 (assuming the field goal). Bucs went on to win the game by 7.

-- GB-JAX: Need I elaborate? 23 flags. 23! The bogus pass interference call on JAX late in the second quarter completely turned this game around. It was one of the worst calls I've ever seen and probably cost JAX the game (although they are to blame for the 4th quarter meltdown, as well).

Should I bring up the Thanksgiving Day game where the dumb shit crew didn't review the Lions' touchdown pass with 40 seconds remaining? That could have cost the Lions their only win of the season, had the closing seconds turned out just a bit differently.

How about the DEN-WASH game where the buffoons called nearly 200 yards in penalties and the game ran over 4 hours (no overtime). Players were openly screaming at the officials after every flag, throwing their hands up in the air in frustration. It was a circus. I've never seen anythign like it (NOTE: The NFL fines often players and coaches if they question the officiating after the game, so this debacle died a quick death and was quietly forgotten because the NFL censors all dissent -- from players, coaches, and the wimp networks.)

How about the BUFF-MIA game where the Bills should have had one final play from the Miami 30 yard line, but the officials took 15 seconds to place the ball correctly and time expired with the Bills standing there with hands on their hips.

How about the BUFF-NWE game where two phantom pass interference calls against the Bills led to a back-breaking touchdown for the Patriots late in the third quarter and a cover?

That's just what I can remember off the top of my head during the last month. If we were to really investigate the officiating with details, we could fill a freakin' hard drive.

We are now to the point where at least ONE QUARTER of all NFL games are no longer decided on the field of play, but by a small clique of idiots throwing flags at key moments, totally disrupting the natural flow of the game. A flag on a third and ten giving a team a key first down at midfield that's trailing by 4 points is absolutely CRITICAL to the final outcome. It's happening in at least a quarter of the games, according to my estimation.

My closing view is that this is EXACTLY what the NFL officials want. They intentionally are involving themselves more in these games, so that the NFL will ultimately be forced to hike the pay scales and make them full-time employees. Public pressure will force the NFL to cave into the demands of the referees union and they will ultimately win not by a strike, but by forcing the NFL's hand to improve pay and working conditions for referees. Yes, my friends, I do believe this is a concerted conspiracy.

-- Nolan Dalla

 

[phoenix566]

too bad we don't know which team they choose to f**k

I could go on and on also, but I think Nolan summed it up pretty well.

like it or not, i believe we will see more before the end of this season....

 

[Skinar]

Good post Nolan. I'm glad you mentioned that non-review in the Lions game. I just couldn't friggin' believe that one, I think the Lions would have won that game. In that same game they reviewed the very next play I think which made no sense at all.

I'm beginning to wonder if some of these guys are just getting too old for the game. Look, I'm 50 right now and I know it would be tough (make that impossible) for me to visually keep up with the speed of these players not to mention all the humping up and down the field, dodging passes (or in some cases, not dodging), dodging players.

Were the replacement refs better or worse? Could anything be worse? I don't remember a year in the NFL when there were so many bad calls that really determined the outcome of the games.

 

[twofingers]

I glad you brought that up about the wimp networks ans announcers. I hear Paul McGuire on a local radio show and he has "hinted" at how absurd the officiating is but has never dared to utter any discontent during any of the games. The NFL broadcast is the sames as the masters. No announcer dares say anything bad about anything that goes on at the Masters or they are gone the way of mcCord and jack whitakker.

Where have you gone Howard Cosell!!