NFL Officiating Becoming Unacceptable
January 2nd, 2011
Joe is giddy — tingly even — with the Bucs making the improbable race to 10. But Joe — after downing his free shot of something red, courtesy of Lee Roy Selmons in St. Petersburg to celebrate the Bucs’ 10th win — has to get something off his chest.
Officiating in the NFL is becoming unconscionable .
Joe still wakes up in the middle of the night cursing to no one in the dark about the horrid call against Kellen Winslow that, barring Bears and Redskins wins, will keep the Bucs out of the playoffs.
The touchdown pass to Mike Williams was virtually indescribable it was so good. Williams fought off a defender for the catch.
That, my friends, is the issue. Williams was held, grabbed, fondled, and quite frankly, wrestled with the entire time after the snap. It was horrible. Horrible!
Joe still doesn’t know what he is more amazed at: that Williams caught the ball or there was no flag.
Friends, the time has not come, it’s past, that interference calls should be reviewed. There is absolutely no reason not to allow interference or non-interference calls to be reviewed.
It has gotten to the point that virtually every pass, Joe is waiting for a flag, looking at the top of the TV screen for yellow warning, or if a receiver is jostled for no flag to be thrown.
Joe hates whining about the officials. It’s not something that is becoming of Joe. But the NFL officiating has gotten that out of hand.
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:29 pm
agreed, just like Josh’s “fumble”
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:40 pm
Joe, don’t forget that Freeman INT at the end of the Falcons throwback game that was DROPPED.
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:41 pm
I hate interference calls. For every interference that should have been callled there is a phantom interference call like the one against MyLew(yes im coining the Bucs version of RayLew!!!LOL) If they start calling more of the ones that should be called there will be nothing but freaking flags on just about every pass downfield. The blown calls even out in the end. If there is one thing I don’t want to see its more flags.
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:42 pm
I agree Joe, I hate to complain about referees because it just feels sleezy for some reason, but we have been getting screwed all season. Although I do believe the only game it would have changed was the lions one.
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:44 pm
I think one of the ways you get around this is by making more plays reviewable. There should also be a financial penalty for the officials who get things wrong.
I realize in the grand scheme of things, these are not life or death decisions they have to make. However, there is absolutely no accountability if they get something wrong. Perhaps an apology from the league, but what kind of deterrent is that to avoid making a bad call?
You have to hit them in the wallet to keep them on top of their game
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:44 pm
Pats right that was the call i hated most this year.
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:47 pm
agreed but i’m more angry at the spotting of 3rd down/should be 1st downs
January 2nd, 2011 at 5:47 pm
Trust me Buc fans. The bucs have had just as many calls unfairly go their way this year. Its just that as fans we typically like to forget all the calls that unfairly help our team out while every call we get screwed on is seared into our memories despite the fact that poor play is usually the real culprit in any loss rather than any single call by an official. I seem to remember the Lions getting hosed in that Detroit game on a noncall where there was obvious facemasking by Arrelious Benn on a defender. See how that works both ways? You can’t just harp on the ones that go against you.
January 2nd, 2011 at 6:03 pm
Referee combine is what we need. These old guys ain’t got the skills anymore.
January 2nd, 2011 at 6:32 pm
We should have a Top Ten Worst calls this year on JBF.
#1 is Winslow PI call.
January 2nd, 2011 at 6:40 pm
I’m thinking the first and nine that gave a 5th down that lost the game was pretty bad too.
January 2nd, 2011 at 7:39 pm
gitarlvr, why should anyone trust you? Are you some kind of authority? Yes the refs put out bad calls, but this one was colossal. So don’t try to discount it by saying calls go both ways. This wasn’t simply 15 yards. This one stole a touchdown, a game and a playoff birth. That deserves all the criticism fans want to pile on.
January 2nd, 2011 at 8:03 pm
Totally Agree Joe. And the ball that Freeman supposedly fumbled did not look like a fumble to me. I think there needs to be an investigation on these guys. Something seems awfully fishy and makes one wonder how much gambling are playing into these obvious wrong calls.
January 2nd, 2011 at 8:21 pm
Joe – Please indicate the name of the back judge that threw the flag on Winslow in the Detroit game. I will write to the NFL and ask that he be barred from games in the future. I think there are many others who will also write an e mail.
If the league office gets a few hundred maybe they will take notice,
Also please supply an e mail address to the league office.
January 2nd, 2011 at 9:10 pm
TrueBlue- I dont know what to tell you guys. If you don’t realize that fans of EVERY team go around EVERY year bellyaching about how the refs have screwed their particular team all year then I guess you don’t know many fans of other teams. I guarantee that if you ask any fan of any team in the league they will all rifle off a list of plays where the zebras robbed their team , caused them to lose a game etc etc… ad nauseum. Everyone thinks the officials have a special hard on for screwing their team. The officials did not rob the Bucs of a playoff berth vs. the Lions. The Bucs still could have easily beaten the Lions had they played even halfway decent football. How about not letting Drew Stanton hook up with Megatron all day long like they were out there playing catch in the backyard? How about not letting some bum named Maurice Morris run the ball down your throat with the game on the line? How about Donald Penn not giving up sacks to guys like Turk Mcbride? Yeah the refs caused all that stuff to happen. Right.
January 2nd, 2011 at 9:26 pm
Phil a ’76 Buc, you wanted the back judges name, here you go…
Gregory Steed, that’s the guy who needs to be tied to a goalpost and have balls thrown at his head by Freeman for an hour.
January 2nd, 2011 at 10:48 pm
Hate to say it, but gitarlvr is absolutely correct. Officials are not intentionally trying to screw certain players or teams, although it often times seems like it. They get graded on their performance, and the last thing they want to do is make a bad call. They are human, though, and their job is next to impossible. Those players are moving so much faster than you realize when you are down on the field (if you have ever been on the field, you would know what I’m talking about). That being said, this year the NFL overall has had some of the crappiest officiating I have ever seen. I think part of the problem is that these officials are only part timers, so they are not completely dedicated to their job. Something needs to be done by the NFL to correct that, and to put these guys in a position to be better prepared on gameday.
January 2nd, 2011 at 11:07 pm
Not to mention the fact that K2 was the intended target and he was being held like crazy….
January 3rd, 2011 at 11:55 am
gitrlvr,
I agree calls go both ways, always have. Are you saying that just because they go both ways…..the NFL is ok and should not try and fix the issue? or improve the product? We are talking about millions of dollars for the business of the NFL itself and billions on the gambling side (which is the main reason the NFL is so successful). I say use every avenue that is available. Just my thoughts.
January 3rd, 2011 at 3:40 pm
face guarding is not against the rules in the NFL… Just something fans like to yell
Joe I agree whole heartedly with this piece. After Sean Jones got his call for holding early that gave the Saints a key first down, then not to call the mugging of Mike Williams.. it befuddles me. Mike Williams tends to be not getting many calls this year and I can’t figure it out. Players that go hard and make plays tend to get an occasional call.