tangledweb

Has anyone noticed just how shitty the officiating has gotten in the NFL? During these first two weeks, between the non-calls and the mystery calls, they can't seem to get anything right.

I am willing to cut the guys some slack because they have a difficult job, but DAMN!....getting half of the call right would be an improvement.

If they can't see enough of the field to call a proper game, they should put some refs in the booth with a camera for more than just challenges.

absorbentishe

I saw many things that were called that were very questionable, to say the least, and many that were missed. Of course being an at home referee, you have a better shot at making the right call. You just hope both good and bad calls go for both teams.

This is happening in college ball too!

tangledweb

>>course being an at home referee, you have a better shot at making the right call.

It does seem like the only solution is to have referee's that access the exact same cameras that we can see on TV. If handled properly, it wouldn't slow down the game any more than it already is. Calls could be made from the officials in the booth and radioed down to the field where the head judge could call them.

We can only dream...

Hrothgar

The NFL officials so far this season are reminding me of the NBA's officials during the playoffs this year.

Not to hijack your thread but real quick note: has anyone noticed that MLB officials seem to get a kick out of throwing players, coaches, etc out of games? They go so far as to follow a player, cursing and mumbling under his breath over bad calls, to the dugout so they can toss em.

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NewBonk

Ever year people complain about the officials and every year the league says of the total number of plays run, most are officiated correctly.

I've wondered if the NFL should take a page from the NBA - when officiating became an issue, they added another official. Would more guys in zebra stripes help solve the problem?

BigGov

The NBA also has 12 fewer guys on the court and also about 1/10th of the contact. The NBA also has about 1% of the close calls the NFL does.

If the NFL added 5 officials there wouldn't be much of a change.

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tangledweb

Without a change in the way the games are called, no amount of added refs would help them. I watched the Pathers game from the end zone today and for most of the game, the officials were out of position to see most of the obvious stuff. They WERE better than most I have watched this year, though.

guthmund

I don't remember seeing as many calls last season.

Four weeks in and I've seen a lot more penalties being called and some obscure rulings on the field.

I watched a handful of games today. None of them seemed to take off because every time a team would build momentum a sea of yellow flags would come out.

Maybe I just don't remember last season all that well......I just wish they'd let the guys play ball.

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tangledweb

I mentioned this on another post but did anyone notice the KC game kickoff return for the TD?

In the dead center of the screen there were two guys blocked in the back - plain as day. One official was only a couple of feet away from the worst one (helmet in the back) and he just stood there while the rape victim tried to get to his feet in front of him.

I love seeing the big returns and Dante Hall(?) deserves a lot of credit for what he is doing this season but that one should not have happened.

quest1mark

i concur.

although theres not excuse for my team (the jaguars) playing shitty defense, a lot of their losses came down to 10 points or under which would have been different if it werent for those crappy refs.

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RAMONES!!!

watching the Panters Bucs game a few weeks bask with so many penalties made me not like football, havent watched a game since then, blame the refs for losing a fan

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rider6061

What about the special teams calls in the OT of the Tampa/Indy game. Bizarre...but what a great game!

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djtestudo

I get upset when people get on the refs for calling penalties in situations that they "shouldn't". If you don't like the rules that force the calls that the refs HAVE to make, find a way to change the rules.

It's like the tuck rule: it's stupid, senseless, but has to be called.

And FTR, the tuck rule was looked at by the rules committee who recommended no changes.

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Sion

I've been watching football for about 30 years now and every year I hear the same thing: fans whining about the officiating. It (the officiating) hasnt really gotten any better or worse, from what I can see. It boils down to two things, really:

1. NFL officials ARE GOING TO miss things. In order to catch every infraction that occurs, they would have to double the number of officials working each game. Problem with that (aside from the fact that the NFL aint gonna do it) is that every other play would draw a flag. There is, for example, holding on damned near every play in every game. It is the NFL officials job to call only the most blatant, which leads me to point #2.

2. Judgement calls. A significant portion of all penalty calls are judgement calls by the official. Any time you have judgement calls, you are going to have controversies, as fans of one team will see it differently from fans of the other. Its as simple as that.

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David2000

Sion's got it right. My basic belief is that the ref's are every bit as much of the game as all the players are, and when they miss stuff, tough shit. I don't like the replay rule because it adds a non-human element to the game. Stuff's gonna happen that you can't help, can't see, and only when you can go back and see the replay 1000 times will you get it right (if even that). I'm all for human error, it's part of the game, and it definitely makes it more interesting. Sports would be boring without these types of discussions.

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bonbonbox

The Refs got worse makeing calls when replay hit. Add to that the fact that teams aren't as disciplined as they were in the past and you got yourself some Lawyerball. Throw deep on every play. Your guy could catch it, good thing. The defence commits a penalty, good thing. No one catches the ball, not good/not bad thing. Defence intercepts, bad thing, and if deep enough, as good as a punt. 2 goods, 1 neutral, and 1 turns the ball over deep. With the offence knowing where the ball is going and the completion to interception ratio of a pro quarterback, I'll take those odds. Refs have become a BIG part of the game when they should blend in to the background. Kill replay and the Refs will get better.