OT: NFL officiating-Seahawks v Rams
Maybe because it involved another team getting screwed (or the Lions getting screwed by proxy), but at least a few more people seem to notice this time. Not that it matters.
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/35441956/nfl-officiating-scrutiny-seahawks-rams-controversy
January 14th, 2023 at 9:39 AM ^
And sadly, the NFL officiating is light years better than CFB officiating. Would have been really fun to watch the Lions play today.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:42 AM ^
My first thought was that if they (the NFL) can't get it right, college doesn't have a chance.
Then I put on my tinfoil hat and thought "they got it exactly the way they wanted it" and twirled my mustache.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:48 AM ^
It doesn't take a tin foil hat to think a multi-billion dollar corporation would do what it thinks will provide it with the most income.
This includes getting the "biggest draws" into the playoffs.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:58 AM ^
Seattle is the biggest draw?
January 14th, 2023 at 11:13 AM ^
Moving a game to a night game at Lambeau against an eliminated Lions team is the move. It just didn't work out they way "they" planned.
January 14th, 2023 at 11:51 AM ^
That doesn't make sense. If Seattle lost, the Lions-Packers game would have been for the last playoff spot. In other words, both teams would have had something to play for, not just the Packers.
January 14th, 2023 at 11:59 AM ^
uh, one of those teams would have been the Lions.
Thumb on the scale for the Packers, worse case scenario-Seahawks.
It's like you're dreamin' about Gorgonzola cheese when it's really Brie time, baby.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:36 PM ^
It's like you're dreamin' about Gorgonzola cheese when it's really Brie time, baby.
Are you high?
January 14th, 2023 at 12:43 PM ^
January 14th, 2023 at 11:02 AM ^
Is Seattle really a bigger draw than Detroit? Not really sure. That said, the end of that game was some of the worst officiating you will ever see. Brutal.
It's been a long time since I really cared about the outcome of a game that impacted the Lions. Was pretty frustrated after Seattle "won" that game last week.
I guess I've fallen off the Kool aid free wagon, lol.
January 14th, 2023 at 11:53 AM ^
Green Bay was who they were trying to get there.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:01 PM ^
Thank you.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:52 PM ^
If that was the case then I would think they’d insure Green Bay would win the game. If NFL was fixing games as you suggest someone would have blown the whistle on that by now.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:21 PM ^
As a non-Lions fan (Bears fan actually), I think the Lions were a bigger national draw than the Seahawks. I don't think the Geno Smith redemption story is really getting too many non-Seahawks fans fired up. Whereas the Lions making the playoffs would've served as like a Hard Knocks Finale.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:44 PM ^
Seattle is not a bigger draw than Detroit. We are a state of hardened masochists.
They go to coffee shops to work.
January 14th, 2023 at 3:06 PM ^
TV ratings from 2021:
3. Green Bay -- 41.57
8. Seattle -- 31.41
19. Detroit -- 20.92
January 14th, 2023 at 5:09 PM ^
Detroit played no prime time games outside of the last Sunday night. I don’t think they even had an afternoon start this season.
They also started 1-6, which probably affected their early season ratings
January 14th, 2023 at 6:10 PM ^
Don't sell me a two year old loaf of bread and call it fresh.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:47 PM ^
The Detroit/Green Bay had the highest viewership of any Sunday night game in 6 years. I believe both teams would’ve been a bigger draw than Seattle.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:40 AM ^
Definitely the most Lions way to get left out of the playoffs
January 14th, 2023 at 9:50 AM ^
I don’t know. I don’t view any of these as horribly egregious compared to most games, at least enough where an entire article would be written about it. There are numerous PI calls/no-calls every game that can be argued. Also taunting and roughing the passer penalties are as inconsistent as any.
If it makes for more consistent officiating, then sure, I’m on board for the anger. Just not sure that this game and these calls are the smoking gun showing a major overhaul is needed.
Refer to The Game 2016 for worse officiating.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:02 AM ^
I’m not even talking about the calls themselves(although there were some absolute nonsense, game-changing calls).
I’m strictly talking about the Lions going 8-2 in their last 10 and losing at the last minute for some bs like this.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:17 AM ^
You know the first 7 games of the season matter also.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:15 AM ^
Agree with this.
The taunting stuff is bullshit anyway and isn't enforced consistently. Roughing the passer is just an awful rule to start with. I thought Smith was out of the pocket on his possible grounding penalty (although I get that wasn't the excuse given).
A lot of close calls didn't go the Rams (and thus Lions) way. The Rams arguably made the Super Bowl 4 years ago on the most egregious non-PI call in league history (against the Saints). It's not a conspiracy.
The belief that all this "training" is going to make it better might be true. People are still going to be upset over the officiating because everyone is biased for their team and thinks their team is getting hosed.
Detroit could have just taken care of business when they played Seattle in week 4.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:44 AM ^
Out of the pocket on the potential grounding, but ball didn't go past the LoS and no receiver in the area.
Also roughing the kicker call was terrible. Punter reaches his arm out to make contact with rusher.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:59 AM ^
'.....with the rusher who was blocked into him'
that was a terrible call and i don't care what angle that ref had. el stinko.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:12 PM ^
Yes, 2016 was a total screw job.
There are two techniques to overcome such a ref effort, though.
One is called the 42-27 technique.
The other is called the 45-23 approach.
I heard Harbaugh is working on a new angle for next year, called the 50-17.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:38 PM ^
I wanna see 100-3.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:34 PM ^
I've been watching the NFL and college for almost 50 years. Just happened to see the Rams game from the third quarter on. That was the worst officiated game I've seen, 2016 vs Ohio State a very close second.
I don't invest a lot of energy or emotion in NFL games, but found myself screaming multiple times with how badly they missed calls in the game. And this for a team that won 5 games all year.
If it didn't know better, it look fixed.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:39 PM ^
Second.
I hate when folks bitch about refs. Like fucking hate it. 1, refs are human and 2, they are part of the game. So yeah, you get the one bad call -- go about your business for the other 59:50 and you don't have to worry about that.
But... yeah, there was lots yelling at the monitor for that one.
January 14th, 2023 at 1:40 PM ^
I agree. It smacks of sour grapes. But the reffing was so egregiously bad, it has to be addressed. I literally have seen better reffing in high school. Many of the calls were right in front of the refs, with the running in to the kicker call the worst on replay. Clearly showed him being pushed into the punter. If his line of sight was blocked, then don't call it.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:53 PM ^
2016 is an apt comparison. The referee on the Rams-Seahawks crew is from Seattle.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:36 AM ^
Yeah, THHEEE ohio backed their way in as we blew them out, but lions crush grren bay at their place and still get shut out.
I know not the same circumstance, but isn't it ironic don't you think, a little too ironic.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:47 PM ^
It’s like the last fuck you straw before we break through.
And it was officially done by the officials in a game on the other side of the country. Epic.
I am a believer next year….unless we draft Stroud then I’m out again.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:41 AM ^
The team is truly cursed.
January 14th, 2023 at 6:00 PM ^
I guess you can look at it that way. But the Lions kind of cursed themselves this season. I am a Lions supporter and really want to see them do well. But they made their bed last season by starting 1-6 during which they lost two very winnable games at Minnesota and home to Seattle. Then on their 8-2 run to close the season they got crushed at Carolina while in the heat of the wild card race. And they had no business getting crushed. They simply played uncharacteristically bad.
So we can talk about the refs and "what ifs" in the Seattle - LA game but the reality is the Lions blew their chances to control their own destiny.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:42 AM ^
More proof though that Stafford took the curse with him when he left.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:44 AM ^
And less proof that he took it with him is that he immediately won the Super Bowl.
January 14th, 2023 at 10:20 AM ^
Airlines finally delivered his lost luggage?
January 14th, 2023 at 10:50 AM ^
This. The trade worked out great for both sides. LA got their Superbowl and the Lions ended up with a top-10 pick. Win/win.
January 14th, 2023 at 11:19 AM ^
Actually couldn't have worked out any better, to be honest! Bet me the Rams would win the SB last year, and then suck enough for a top ten draft pick the very next year.
I would not have taken that bet...
January 14th, 2023 at 11:37 AM ^
Not only that, but Goff has been good enough for the Lions that they don't need to draft a quarterback with one of their 2 picks in the first round. They can pick two players who can contribute immediately next season.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:50 PM ^
Nobody was planning on the Rams pick being #6 overall.
I am happy for Stafford and the Rams got their Super Bowl but shit this trade is looking like a brilliant move by the Lions.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:50 AM ^
So NFL officials suck, NCAA officials suck, NBA officials certainly suck. MLB has plenty of umpires who are inconsistent on balls and strikes. Seems to be a pattern here.
January 14th, 2023 at 11:24 AM ^
Yes. Human beings make mistakes. That's the pattern. We are not perfect creatures and until refs are robots, mistakes are always going to be made. I find bitching about officiating to be completely pedantic at best, insufferable at worst.
January 14th, 2023 at 12:51 PM ^
Cmon man. It’s therapeutic.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:54 AM ^
So this is how the NFL reacts after a badly officiated game? It's a little different than how the B1G reacts - by penalizing the team that got wrongly penalized on the field. CFB in general doesn't even seem to care about what it's officials do during games.
I mean, why should they? Anyone that complains about officials is told by the media that their team should've played better...
I prefer the way the NFL handles officials better than the way college handles them.
January 14th, 2023 at 9:59 AM ^
Seattle 48, Detroit 45
End of story, unfortunately
January 14th, 2023 at 10:18 AM ^
(to paraphrase Dan Hawkins) this ain't college football, brother
January 14th, 2023 at 10:57 AM ^
Also marred by atrocious officiating.