NFL Officiating: Zebras gone wild

[Devizier]

The NFL has made so many rule changes over the years to gin up portions of the game for entertainment value (i.e. passing) that we have lost the meaning of "fair play" in the NFL rules context. What I mean by this is that we no longer refer to a common standard of "catch" or "fumble"; we instead have to collectively navigate rules which we might perceive to be stupid and ridiculous but we still have to be like "well that's the way the rule is written".

The big one is replay, which was introduced as a result of a Shawn Jefferson sideline catch during a Patriots-Bills game in 1998.

That got Ralph Wilson to back down from his virulent anti-replay stance and the rest is history. I thought Wilson was crazy for a while, but I’ve come around to his old way of thinking.

 

[Shelterdog]

I think your conclusion that the refs saw all kinds of penalties in the secondary and decided not to call them until they did at the end is nonsense.

I don't think there was a lot of holding and PI to begin with, but yeah, they didn't see everything.

I think they had a light tough on calling PI--probably deliberately, they generally do in playoffs-light touch or not yanking a guy's jersey as much as was done on that play is just going to draw a flag every time.

 

[BaseballJones]

I think your conclusion that the refs saw all kinds of penalties in the secondary and decided not to call them until they did at the end is nonsense.

I don't think there was a lot of holding and PI to begin with, but yeah, they didn't see everything.

I don't really understand. When the Pats played the Eagles in the SB a few years ago, they absolutely let all kinds of offensive holding go - didn't call a single offensive holding call all game long even though there was TONS of holding (which is one reason why the teams threw for crazy yards that day). It's totally possible that the refs decided beforehand to "let the players play" and call the game loosely instead of being really tight on calls. This wouldn't be remotely surprising. It took me just a few seconds to think of a couple of pretty egregious defensive penalties that they didn't call. Hard to believe there weren't more, which would make me ask why weren't ANY of them called? Again, either (a) the refs were incompetent and couldn't identify ANY defensive holding/DPI penalties even though they happened all over, or (b) they decided to let more go than usual over the course of the game.

Anyway, whatever, it doesn't really matter to me. I don't have a rooting interest in either team. You might be right in that it was just incompetence.

 

[Strike4]

I suppose rule changes don't help, but the real change has been the ubiquity of high def, slow motion instant replay. We used to know what a catch was because we didn't have 14 different angles showing that the ball moved a smidge when the receiver hit the ground. Now we can never be sure until the next play starts.

And replay also allows for things like the Clement review in 2018 where people become so jaded and confused with replay rules that the NFL is able to do just what @Van Everyman mentions above: interfere with the officiating at will when they see fit.

 

[CoffeeNerdness]

Don't have time to go through the whole game, but this is the one I was referring to. 2nd quarter, KC facing 3rd and 8, down 14-7. Pass over the middle to JuJu is incomplete. He screams for a flag. If you have the video you can see how blatant a hold it was. But here's the screenshot. (I don't know how to paste the clip).

View attachment 61172

Even Olsen was commenting how the refs missed that one.

Also note that it was Bradberry - the same one who committed the penalty at the end. If he was getting away with this during the game, obviously it would make sense that he would play it the same way at the end, having been given no reason to think that the refs would call it. This one above was WAY worse than the one at the end, by the way.

Then there was this one at the end of the first half, on the deep ball to Smith down the right sideline. He hauled it in, but that's when the refs delayed the snap for some reason (I don't recall why) and KC ended up challenging the catch and it was overturned.

View attachment 61173

Bunch of comments in the game thread, and the video is pretty conclusive, but yeah, Sneed totally interfered with Smith on this play - got there and grabbed Smith's arms before the ball got there. That Smith caught it was pretty amazing actually, though it got overturned.

Anyway, those are two examples of physical play by DBs that didn't get called. Both were significantly worse than what happened at the end when they DID throw a flag.

Do you really want an NFL where that second play is PI? No way that's flag worthy, IMO. The Shuster play was a clear miss.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yCSzZ5B1tI&t=16s

 

[BaseballJones]

Do you really want an NFL where that second play is PI? No way that's flag worthy, IMO. The Shuster play was a clear miss.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yCSzZ5B1tI&t=16s

No I want things to be more loosely called.

Which is why the last penalty that effectively ended the game wasn’t at all in the realm of what I would prefer. Especially since they let more egregious stuff go all game long.

But ok I’m sorry… this is my last post on the subject.

 

[uncannymanny]

Was that a SB where Gronk got absolutely mobbed up the middle near the goal line and nothing was called?

 

[luckiestman]

I think they had a light tough on calling PI--probably deliberately, they generally do in playoffs-light touch or not yanking a guy's jersey as much as was done on that play is just going to draw a flag every time.

Idk, man. There were 66 points scored by offense. That doesn’t lead me to believe a lot of PI calls were being missed. On the other hand, Sauce is regularly way handsier than the DB that got flagged so I didn’t love the call.

 

[Marciano490]

Idk, man. There were 66 points scored by offense. That doesn’t lead me to believe a lot of PI calls were being missed. On the other hand, Sauce is regularly way handsier than the DB that got flagged so I didn’t love the call.

I hope Breece is healthy next year so we get to see how Sauce would be officiated in a Super Bowl.

 

[Seels]

Something I don't see mentioned elsewhere:

Forget whether the actual call was justified or not. But the reality is that the professional sports leagues have made the decision to get in bed with gambling and gambling advertisers. I can't blame any fan for questioning it when commercial breaks all night are for fan duel etc. I don't think it's reasonable to continue to give these leagues the benefit of the doubt.

Also - despite the call being bad on its own merits - that happens -- but why is there not a backup check for it? How are the powers that be not seeing reaction to that live and reversing it?

Then again - the Eagles won SB52 in large part from inconsistent officiating. So w/e.

 

[koufax32]

Was that a SB where Gronk got absolutely mobbed up the middle near the goal line and nothing was called?

Last play of a regular season game in prime time at Carolina?

 

[uncannymanny]

Last play of a regular season game in prime time at Carolina?

Yup. That’s the one.

 

[Preacher]

Yup. That’s the one.

When he got tackled in the end zone? I think they actually threw a flag and then picked it up, IIRC.

 

[uncannymanny]

When he got tackled in the end zone? I think they actually threw a flag and then picked it up, IIRC.

Yup. It was deemed “uncatchable.”