Jonesin' With NYY

A collection of musings and thoughts, along with a convoluted look at activities around the NFL, NCAA, and the world.

NFL Referees Are Incompetent!

Yes it is a strong statement...but I feel it is well deserved, through no fault of the referees, but of the NFL itself. It's time for the NFL to become serious about the lack of consistency and education of its officials. Of all the professional sports leagues, in my personal opinion, the NFL has the worse officiating...period. And, this is from what has become the most financially successful and most watched and followed sports league of all, which I see as both a shame, and and a sham. It is, and has been the weakest and most inconsistent part of the game for way too long now, and by all accounts, it should be the most well defined, strongest, and most consistent. In short, the fans are being ripped off for a few dollars by the NFL owners, and until someone like Jerry Jones loses a Super Bowl, or a chance to go to the Super Bowl by a bad or incorrect call, it's unfortunately not likely to change.

Last night I witnessed yet again, another poorly officiated game that involved the San Diego Chargers. Unlike last year when the Chargers were on the wrong end on numerous incorrect and just plain bad calls by the NFL's poorly/untrained officials during the first five games of the season, one of which became infamous, this time the Chargers were the beneficiaries of what I perceive to be an incorrect, and just plain bad call. It happened early enough that it likely had no real bearing on the outcome of the game, but then again, it may have too...who's to say?

IMO, the Chargers benefitted from a questionable call when Raiders rookie WR Louis Murphy (who Raider fans should love...he seriously looks to be a dynamic weapon, and clearly is a much better prospect at WR than their No. 1 pick, DHB, who showed off his hands of stone when he dropped a perfectly thrown ball) was ruled to not have had full possession of what I clearly thought was a touchdown. I personally did not see any "lack of possession," although I guess what the rule states is when you hit the ground the ball can not touch it. Still, as I saw it, his butt hit the ground with him having possession, and to me, that's a touchdown. The fact that afterwards, as he rolled to the ground the nose of the ball hit the ground should have been elementary to, and after the fact.

Personally, I am disappointed in the way the NFL treats its referees. I'm tired of and how it's ignored them for so long, or looked the other way, or had to outright admit the call was wrong, that it has reached the point where too many games are decided by refs who should not be on the field...through no fault of their own, but of the NFL's for not following baseball's lead, and having full-time officials who study and perfect their craft year round. You see way less mistakes from baseball officials than you do football's, and they have to make a lot of bang, bang calls. As a long time football fan, I can only state that the more the NFL tinkers with its rules, and this is only one example, the more shallow the game is becoming.

I'm also not a fan of the "Brady Rule," which came back to almost haunt the Pats, nor of incidental contact downfield between DBs either. It just seems to me that too many times these rules are not called consistently, but that it mostly depends on who the refs are, and in many instances they are out of position to make the proper call anyhow. All of these rules also leave all, or too much of the interpretation of the purported infraction up to the judgement of the refs, without there being a clearly defined and well thought out set of examples and/or interpretations of these infractions for the refs to refer to. So long as the NFL continues to treat their refs as part-time and second-hand employees, this will not get better. Only with full-time, dedicated referees, who study their craft year round will the NFL have a more consistent product.

Using Instant Replay is fine, but it takes way too much time, and in many instances, like last night's, leaves the long-time fans wondering just what the rules are anyhow. If that's the case, just imagine what it does to the casual or new fan. I would think it could have detrimental effects by turning these types of fans off to the game.

I don't know, but the NFL needs to look at some old film and remember what this game is really about. I'm not suggesting they go back to the way they played in the 60s or 70s, but this is a contact game. Other than certain improvements, such as outlawing the Horse Collar tackle, etc., they should allow the players to play. Okay, if the DB is holding on to, or pushing all the way downfiled, flag him, but not for an incidental contact that in most instances has no bearing on the play's outcome, or even worse, often times it is initiated by the WR to begin with. If a DL has a QB in his grasp and takes him down within the natural process of the tackle, so what? That's what these guys are drafted and trained to do. If intential purpose to harm can be detected, then yes a flag is necessary, if not outright ejection, but that should not just pertain to DL/Pass Rushers and QBs, but all players. And, if a WR catches the ball, and in the process of rolling over to get up the nose of the ball touches the ground, he still caught it. In other words, get the rules right, and get the untrained, or poorly trained refs and their personel opinions out of the game.

As a Charger fan, I know how the Raider fans feel. This happened to the Chargers on an almost game by game basis at the beginning of last year, highlighted by the Hochuli call becoming the infamous call of the year. They say these calls even out, and it's not like Raider fans haven't seen their team benefit from a bad call or two either, with the "Holy Roller" perhaps being the most infamous. Still, it has to be disconcerting to fans to know the NFL is presenting us with an inferior product with its officiating.

It certainly does not make me feel better to know the problem with the NFL referees, and their almost arbitrary interpretation of the rule book on many types of plays continues to be ignored by the league. I don't want officials to have to "make up" for past mistakes against my team, or any team. What I want, are professional referees calling the games. I want clearly defined rules that are not open to arbitrary interpetation while allowing the players to play naturally like they've been trained without having to worry about being flagged. That being said, there will still be mistakes, but they will be much further and farther between, and Instant Replay can then be a real tool that should result in the right call in the end on almost any play...and hopefully take way less time.

Until Next Time...

Keep On Jonesin'