Yeah it’s nuts…to me, a penalty should be called if it (a) actually alters the play, and (b) is pretty clear. I hate ticky tack calls, and I hate BS calls away from the play that have no impact on the outcome of the play. also, some calls like defensive holding shouldn’t have automatic first downs either. I get the intent is to not let defenders just grab receivers going deep, but if it’s ticky tack and the QB never even looked that way, then that’s too big a penalty. Not sure what the solution is, but the inconsistency is brutal. I still can’t get the picture out of my mind where JJ was being held around the neck with his arms up so that they could give Mahomes 30 seconds on a 3rd and 20+ down. It was SO blatant that you just can’t get around it. they REALLY need to do something about DPI, RTP, and then the OL holding calls and DB holding calls…those are game changing calls way too often
Yes, it's obvious that the NFL doesn't want "perfection", they want refs they can control so they can control outcomes when they want to. Having done the opposite of what baseball did after the Black Sox scandal (but since reversed in the past few years with legalized gambling), and gotten in bed with the gambling industry, being able to control games through the refs is simply a logical mechanism. Unless - and until - the NFL cuts its ties with gambling we're not going to see any meaningful change with the refs and rules interpretation.
Agreed, although I think it all comes down more to the fact that the NFL isn't even a sports enterprise. They're no different from the WWE in that they are an entertainment enterprise. I mean, we're seriously bending over backwards to entertain the Swifties and cater to their fragile egos by not having the Chiefs lose because we don't want a disappointed emerging "fanbase" that doesn't understand what losing actually means.
Rather than start w new thread, I figured I post this question here: Why isn't pass interference called on a Hail Mary? Is there some rule exception? Or simply the refs stuffing their hankies deep in their pockets? Because if you watch any Hail Mary play there is most certainly blatant P.I. involved. And when you consider some of the "ticky tack" calls made (usually on the Jets) for this, the question begs an answer. The only thing I can think of is that since the game can't end on a penalty, a P.I. call would require placing the ball at the 1 yard line and giving the offense a chance to score with no time left on the clock. And if they did this, it would likely encourage all teams to throw the ball into the EZ with a good chance of getting a last chance to score, even if the pass isn't particularly well thrown. This makes some sense to me, but I wonder if this has been codified into the rules as "No P.I. called in the EZ at the end of the game"? Does anyone know the answer?
it can be called on one and has before. the rules don't change because it's a hail mary. But because it's a desperation jump ball with usually a group of players around all going for it, the refs tend to let them play a little more instead of a gimme on a ticky tack penalty. the jets one looked clean, no need for a penalty. but there was one earlier this year, i forgot which team, where the CBs basically tackled the TE and it should have been called but wasn't.
Lost in the putrid stench of the Jets offense was the stench of officiating that was either incompetent or under direction to punish the Jets. If Woody had any balls he'd confront the league office and go public with this obvious bias against the Jets by the officials.
