NFL officiating inconsistency

[Buffalo Ballin]

Against the Chiefs, we usually don't get the first down. Refs always spot the ball short.

[billsfan89]

9 minutes ago, Simon said:

 

That is certainly a problem, has been for a long time and also something that is making me watch less football overthe years, but that is more procedural and less systemic, imo.

I think the biggest problem is simply that the game is badly over-officiated and these guys are throwing waaaay too many flags. I don't turn my TV on on Sundays to watch zebras every 90 seconds; it's going to lead to me bailing on the NFL when Allen hangs them up.

This bull**** where guys are throwing flags every time they see an "indicator" is destroying the viewing experience, imo.

If you don't see an actual penalty being committed then don't even consider reaching for your flag. If you miss a couple calls because a guy was crafty and got away with something, too f'ing bad. You're there to keep the game flowing and to prevent problems, not to create them by thinking you can catch every penalty in every game by throwing flags at everything that might have been a hold.

 

The problem is if you start holding in flags you then get to the Seattle Seahawks Legion of Boom or 03/04 Pats where the players just do defensive holding on every play knowing you aren't gonna call it and it alters the game in a negative way. I tend to agree with a more let them play mindset but I think what needs to occur is you just have to call it consistently. If you are gonna call it "ticky tact" call it that way the whole game and on both sides. Players will adjust in game to how officials are call it if they are calling it consistent. The issue comes when you "let them play" on some downs and call borderline soft calls on other downs. 

 

It's a delicate balance but I think just trying to make things consistent is the best you can do. 

[Low Positive]

11 minutes ago, Simon said:

 

That is certainly a problem, has been for a long time and also something that is making me watch less football overthe years, but that is more procedural and less systemic, imo.

I think the biggest problem is simply that the game is badly over-officiated and these guys are throwing waaaay too many flags. I don't turn my TV on on Sundays to watch zebras every 90 seconds; it's going to lead to me bailing on the NFL when Allen hangs them up.

This bull**** where guys are throwing flags every time they see an "indicator" is destroying the viewing experience, imo.

If you don't see an actual penalty being committed then don't even consider reaching for your flag. If you miss a couple calls because a guy was crafty and got away with something, too f'ing bad. You're there to keep the game flowing and to prevent problems, not to create them by thinking you can catch every penalty in every game by throwing flags at everything that might have been a hold.

Yep. No kid ever grew up with an Ed Hoculi poster on his wall, dreaming of working on his biceps before donning the zebra stripes. 

[Simon]

5 minutes ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

It is alsmo as absurd as the Tuck Rule which was invented on the spot to help the Pats to launch the epic dynasty.

 

This is not true at all.

The Tuck rule had been on the books for 2-3 years before that play.

Whether that was the appropriate place to apply it is certainly debatable(it wasn't and they blew the call), but it was not something they just made up.

The rule itself was a stupid answer in search of a problem that didn't even exist and they finally got rid of it some years later.

[billsfan89]

Just now, Buffalo Ballin said:

Against the Chiefs, we usually don't get the first down. Refs always spot the ball short.

 

The 2024 AFCCG still pisses me off to this day. I think on Twitter someone put together 4-6 spots where the refs clearly marked the ball a half yard to yard shorter than it should have been for the Bills but made no such underestimates for the Chiefs. 

[RoyBatty is alive]

4 hours ago, BuffaloBillyG said:

Yeah, I think they have to walk a fine line between using technology and potentially slowing down the game. I get it. 

 

What they need to do is have some veil of transparency. One of the summer leagues (CFL I believe) had it so why a play was reviewed, instead of bringing in an old retired ref to explain and dictate what they were looking for, actually cut to the review booth and we could hear them communicate with the ref down on the field. What they saw. What their interpretation was. It was enlightening. 

 

And every game should have a replay official on site. Not some random guy "in New York" that buzzes in periodically that is trying to keep tabs on 7-8 games at once. 

 

Like I said above, being an on field ref is extremely tough. I don't really think for a second  that they are placing bets and swaying the game on purpose.Your eyes won't see everything. But the technology is there. It's stupid not to use it when you have billions of dollars on the line. 

Agreed but for the $ involved, there should not be one "random" buy in New York watching 7-8 games.  Let start with  3 officials watching all the games and when a controversy emerges, the three vote on it.  Or if need be several groups of officials.

[Jalan81]

2 hours ago, Kirby Jackson said:

The officiating is bad. It’s bad because we have the technology and ability to make it better. It’s incredibly inconsistent and we can all see when a mistake is made. It starts with consistency. There’s no reason that the Goff play and Shough play should have been different. I don’t care about “the ruling on the field” either. That’s nonsense. Whatever is “right” is what needs to be the call at all times.

 

I’d like to see teams have 5 challenges per game and every time you are right, you get to keep that one. Basically, you’re never deciding “should I throw the flag here.” You’d have to make the system much faster than some old guy running to the sideline to look at an iPad. You should be able to challenge everything from a false start, to a first down, to a catch or whatever. The goal should be, “we need to increase inconsistency and get it right more often than we currently are. Even if that slows the game down a little that’s better than costing a team a game on the wrong call like WMU - Michigan.” 

Every play should be reviewable. The video reviewer who wouldn’t overturn bad PI calls should have been fired on the spot. 

1 hour ago, RoyBatty is alive said:

Agreed but for the $ involved, there should not be one "random" buy in New York watching 7-8 games.  Let start with  3 officials watching all the games and when a controversy emerges, the three vote on it.  Or if need be several groups of officials.

 3 guys in separate cubicles who have no idea how the other voting.

[B-Man]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Búfalo Blanco]

It was affecting the Bills yesterday and will again at a critical moment, like many seasons. It's not always a "mistake" in my opinion. They're in bed with Vegas, so one has to wonder when it affects wins/losses. Sure helped Brady/Belichick in countless situations... 

[Pecker]

I understand that we have higher definition cameras and TVs and it’s easier than ever to share mistakes.  In the past it would have been too grainy a picture to see all the poor spots in that KC game for example.

 

that said - There is no reason for it to be this bad.  It would be so easy to improve consistency with mandatory red meetings throughout the week, film review, and a crew in the sky monitoring every game. 

 

Since it still is so terrible, I’m left to conclude it’s this bad ON PURPOSE.

[Success]

8 hours ago, billsfan89 said:

For as long as I've been alive I remember my dad complaining about NFL officiating, hell my dad is convinced Super Bowl 4 was rigged. Since I've been a fan (2000) I've constantly seen fans complaining about officiating. I've never seen fans ever say an era of officiating was good. That's not to say there aren't legitimate critiques of officiating and rules, there will always be that. But I just hate fans acting like there was ever a time when officiating was good but now it is so horrible that they want to stop watching. 

 

And not just football.  All major sports.  Most games move really fast, and officials actually do a pretty good job given that (for the most part).

 

It's really just part of the game.  I'm much more at peace when I look at it that way.  And your teams will both win & lose games because of bad officiating, so it does balance out to an extent.

 

 

[nosejob]

4 hours ago, Simon said:

 

That is certainly a problem, has been for a long time and also something that is making me watch less football overthe years, but that is more procedural and less systemic, imo.

I think the biggest problem is simply that the game is badly over-officiated and these guys are throwing waaaay too many flags. I don't turn my TV on on Sundays to watch zebras every 90 seconds; it's going to lead to me bailing on the NFL when Allen hangs them up.

This bull**** where guys are throwing flags every time they see an "indicator" is destroying the viewing experience, imo.

If you don't see an actual penalty being committed then don't even consider reaching for your flag. If you miss a couple calls because a guy was crafty and got away with something, too f'ing bad. You're there to keep the game flowing and to prevent problems, not to create them by thinking you can catch every penalty in every game by throwing flags at everything that might have been a hold.

I know, right? Every game there's always the ticky tack false starts and holding calls. Such BS.  Signed Dion Dawkins

[nosejob]

It's always hard to think of a call ...or a non-call that went the Bills way. Here's one that I remember.  LOL

 

Edited September 29 by nosejob

[Buffalo Boy]

29 minutes ago, ***** said:

Since it still is so terrible, I’m left to conclude it’s this bad ON PURPOSE.

21 minutes ago, Success said:

Most games move really fast, and officials actually do a pretty good job given that (for the most part).

   Not that it is news to anyone but from a “ Is it logical or sensible?” Viewpoint, how do you have guys who are physically and mentally past their prime and are amateurs doing this job. 
   The NFL is making an informed decision to not hire younger people and make it their full time job. This would absolutely lead to a more uniform level of reffing. Weekly training, constant feedback on good vs bad calls.
    They have annual rule meeting where they tinker and twiddle with this rule and that. They have the money!!!! They have brought in technology. But they don’t hire people to use it correctly. Who is it that they send it to to look at it when they send it to the league or New York or wherever they say someone is looking at it? 
   I’m pushing sixty. I’ve been doing MA since I was 24. I’m in really good physical shape for my age. I exercise all the time. But my reactions are not what they were. My eyes are progressively worse every year. I don’t have the stamina I had even five years ago. I wouldn’t hire someone like me to be a Ref for a Multi Billion dollar sport. ( Smart arse jokes incoming I’m sure) 

   If they literally just got rid of all technology and replay and let them call the games, I could absolutely live with that. But to have obvious after obvious calls go completely wrong while other calls get immediately change by “ replay assist” ????? It is a choice they are making and they are making it for a reason. 
    

[Mikie2times]

4 hours ago, billsfan89 said:

 

The problem is if you start holding in flags you then get to the Seattle Seahawks Legion of Boom or 03/04 Pats where the players just do defensive holding on every play knowing you aren't gonna call it and it alters the game in a negative way. I tend to agree with a more let them play mindset but I think what needs to occur is you just have to call it consistently. If you are gonna call it "ticky tact" call it that way the whole game and on both sides. Players will adjust in game to how officials are call it if they are calling it consistent. The issue comes when you "let them play" on some downs and call borderline soft calls on other downs. 

 

It's a delicate balance but I think just trying to make things consistent is the best you can do. 

I mean, so be it if that is the occasional outcome or even the majority outcome. The game was enjoyable in the early 90's when you could basically mug somebody. The point in which it stops becoming enjoyable is when you stop celebrating big plays because you have been conditioned multiple times in the game to not enjoy them with marginal calls. The holding call on our TD, which was a fantastic play, called back because of a call like that. A marginal call on an INT. Go to other games and a truly outstanding play in the Denver game called back which literally decided the game. Were any of you not waiting like 45 seconds after the Chargers failed on 4th down for a defensive holding call? Nobody is here for the refs. I hate when they insert themselves like this. My tolerance for a missed call is 10x as big than my tolerance for a bad call.  You can call penalty on every play. That's just how the game is. 

Edited September 29 by Mikie2times

[Matt_In_NH]

Holding and PI and a few others are inconsistent because they are subjective and not reviewable.  You can’t review them because they are subjective.   I challenge anyone who thinks the officiating is worse today to go watch a game on YouTube from the 80s.  Clear turnovers missed, scoring plays called wrong etc that flipped games all the time.  Super clear and obvious stuff.  The job of an official is not something a human can do well.  One vantage point, bang bang plays. You don’t get to slow it down and make the call. 

[billsfan89]

1 hour ago, Mikie2times said:

I mean, so be it if that is the occasional outcome or even the majority outcome. The game was enjoyable in the early 90's when you could basically mug somebody. The point in which it stops becoming enjoyable is when you stop celebrating big plays because you have been conditioned multiple times in the game to not enjoy them with marginal calls. The holding call on our TD, which was a fantastic play, called back because of a call like that. A marginal call on an INT. Go to other games and a truly outstanding play in the Denver game called back which literally decided the game. Were any of you not waiting like 45 seconds after the Chargers failed on 4th down for a defensive holding call? Nobody is here for the refs. I hate when they insert themselves like this. My tolerance for a missed call is 10x as big than my tolerance for a bad call.  You can call penalty on every play. That's just how the game is. 

No one is here for the refs but they are also a necessary evil because I don’t want to see WR’s getting mugged that’s not enjoyable either. It’s about calling a game consistently and allowing for a reasonable and consistent officiated game. If the officiating is consistent the players play within it well.

[Pecker]

16 hours ago, Matt_In_NH said:

Holding and PI and a few others are inconsistent because they are subjective and not reviewable.  You can’t review them because they are subjective.   I challenge anyone who thinks the officiating is worse today to go watch a game on YouTube from the 80s.  Clear turnovers missed, scoring plays called wrong etc that flipped games all the time.  Super clear and obvious stuff.  The job of an official is not something a human can do well.  One vantage point, bang bang plays. You don’t get to slow it down and make the call. 

the refs will always make those obvious and typical “human error” mistakes.  Thats expected.

 

its worse tho when the slow motion high-definition reviews STILL GETS THE OBVIOUS CALL WRONG.  And then some suit comes on tv with a non-sensicle explanation that makes it all worse! 
 

I could live with human error.  I could live with more reviews slowing the game down IFIF IF the calls are correct.

 

i cannot live with the current ridiculously terrible system 

[Matt_In_NH]

1 hour ago, ***** said:

STILL GETS THE OBVIOUS CALL WRONG

This is where we differ.  If you are referring to a call like the Brandon Cooks interception, I dont agree at all it was obvious.  No matter how they define catch/possession, there is a subjective element to it, there will be plays where it is close the the line of catch/no catch.  That play is one of them....as Bills fans we want it interpreted a certain way.  They are fairly consistent that when it is not clear, they stick with the call on the field.  I know we might not agree on what is clear or not.  But when you have to stop it on one frame to make an argument catch or not, you are close to the area where it could go either way.

[YattaOkasan]

the thing that kills me still is the play clock and reviews.  the play clock expiring is an objective thing we can clearly check after the play.  twice on sunday it hit 0 clearly and the chargers still get the play. 

 

let the refs call it the same way to make sure the play can go off if its close.  But when it clearly shows 0 and the ball aint snapped for another half second a review has to be an option.  im not mad at chubb at all for going when playclock hit 0.  if the offense uses too much of their play clock they should lose the advantage of the snap count.  then the next time it happened was on 4th down.  imagine if herbert completes that play yet its clearly a delay of game.  absolutely bogus they cant get that part sorted.