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| Courtesy Deadspin |
The NFL referee lockout has officially reached a breaking point. Games are being changed by missed calls and non calls that should be made. I have never seen so many blatant false starts missed which may be the single easiest penalty for officials. There is a fundamental misconception of many rules, most glaringly pass interference.
There are now issues developing that go beyond simple poor rulings. It took the preseason and first week to gauge the knowledge level of the replacement referees. Now players and coaches are taking that information and bending the rules like never before as well as testing the limits of what the officials can see on the field. Excessive holding has been a constant issue which makes sense because it usually happens in some form on every play. However, players understand the newbies are not used to the speed of the game and do not know what to look for.
The NFL has been so incredibly outspoken about player safety in the last year, but have not addressed how inexperienced officials are allowing illegal hits to be called. Helmet to helmet as well as hits to defenseless receivers are going unnoticed. Isn't it a bit hypocritical to so dramatically change the rules of football to protect players, but then hire people who are not fully capable of enforcing that rule set?
Anyone who saw Golden Tate's dirty shot in the Seahawks game against the Cowboys can attest that players will continue to take advantage and games will come with increasing risk. The amount of fighting after the play and cheap shots has become absurd. Let's not look past coaches who are in the ear of the officials for the entire game. This is not unusual, but normal referees have learned how to properly deal with and often ignore pestering coaches. Replacement officials seem to be much more effected.
The increase in late flags being thrown and penalties being taken back after the fact must be at an all time high. The amount of time it has taken for challenges to be looked at has been astronomical, at times creating long unnecessary delays. Overall, game times are already averaging ten minutes longer then normal. These replacement referees do not have control of the game which is the most important duty of the officials.
The most infuriating part of this lockout saga is the amount of money that is being fought over. The NFL has become a superpower in every sense. If they gave into every single one of the referees demands and doubled the money, it would not have a significant economic effect on the league. I agree with many of the changes Roger Goodell has made to the game. However, this looks like a power play more then anything. The commissioner knows how the NFL consumes our lives and despite being upset, fans will keep watching. The NFL will still make insane amounts of money and to the league that is all that matters.
UPDATE: In one of the most
controversial plays in NFL history, on Monday Night Football with the
nation watching, a last minute hail mary from the Seahawks Russell
Wilson was ruled complete and beat the Green Bay
Packers. The ball was clearly intercepted by Green Bay safety M.D.
Jennings. After many horrible calls and confusion throughout the NFL
season, the replacement referees single-handedly reversed the
appropriate outcome of a game.
Note: I am a very loyal Green Bay Packers fan. (Also it is an odd coincidence that I had previously mentioned Golden Tate in this post on Wednesday. Maybe a subconscious premonition?)
I'm not one of those people
that has slow mornings. I'm usually up and at it as soon as I wake up and already
have a list in my head of things to do. Most of the time it involves
reading or writing about sports and pushing myself
to my apartment complex's gym. I don't doddle. Today, I just wanted to go back to sleep.
I wasn't tired, I simply wanted to go back to dreaming and not have to the
face the reality that a win was stripped, stolen, snatched away from
my beloved Packers. There has been so much outrage over one of the worst
calls you will ever see in sports, but I'm more sad then angry.
I can't stop thinking about the
ramifications of the blown call. What if the Packers miss the playoffs
by a game? What if they miss a home playoff game or home field advantage
because a replacement referee was not adequately
prepared to do his job? I already want to know what happens in the
parallel universe where the call was correctly ruled an interception and
Green Bay sits atop the NFC North with a 2-1 record. This call could be
no big deal, or could have monumental ramifications,
we just don't know yet.
The sting of the atrocious game winning "touchdinception" and subsequent result would not hurt as much if it did not happen to my favorite team. However, it's disheartening to see a sport that preaches integrity, refuse to correct an easily fixable problem that is significantly effecting the play on the field. I said it before, the NFL could concede to every demand and it would be pennies to the owners. The amount of greed being shown by the owners and desire for power that Roger Goodell is exhibiting is disgusting.
It should be said that the problem goes way beyond this specific play (I have not even mentioned the blatant offensive pass interference not called on Golden Tate, which the NFL has admitted, as well as the illegal block in the back at the line of scrimmage) but what the fans, players, and coaches have dealt with all season. The game is not under control. Aside from the obvious incorrect calls, the way football is played is being altered. Players are taking cheap shots, coaches are trying to take advantage, and games are dragging along as mass confusion becomes the headline.
I can only hope that something positive comes out of this horrific injustice. In a perfect World this will be the play and game that force Goodell and the owners to bring back the men who know how to properly officiate. Within a couple of hours after the game we saw a backlash from players, fans, and media that is arguably unequal in the history of sports. Social media has a lot to do with that as everyone is able to have their opinions heard (including some Packers players that were unable to control their emotions). I will never forgive Roger Goodell. If the Packers win the rest of their games and become champions, it won't change a thing. The man in charge has clearly shown that the integrity of this sport is simply not as important as money.
That last sentence is meaningful to me. "The man in charge has clearly shown that the integrity of this sport is simply not as important as money." I have always believed that sport is a reflection of society, that it's more then a game. Now, I'm not naive. I understand that money drives all sports and the NFL is king when it comes to finances. However, "with great power comes great responsibility." I would like to hope that a group of such powerful and absurdly wealthy people would be willing to concede a tiny amount in order to benefit millions of fellow countrymen. And therein lies the problem. What's wrong with the NFL and this lockout is what's wrong with our country.
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| Courtesy Sports Illustrated |
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