The “refs are out to get us” evidence is actually thin

daboyzruleperiod said:

These come to mind right away. Time for the refs to have body cams.

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Does anyone know the number of times a coach has been called for unsportsmanlike for yelling?

In the NFL, that is, not college basketball.

aria said:

Don’t forget there’s a good chance we wouldn’t even have been in that Green Bay game if the refs didn’t screw over Detroit to put us there.

Of course there’s people that still defend Hitchins on that play and act like players run out on the field (with their helmet off) and start arguing with officials all the time.

Again, had that happened to us and we lost that would be the play that would still be talked the most, not the Dez non catch, because we would have probably never been in that GB game to begin with.

IMOF, I remember reading and hearing comments after that Detroit game and most NFL fans who weren’t Cowboys fans were saying that the officials purposely screwed Dallas because Dallas in the playoffs, and possibly Super Bowl, would bring more money and better ratings, both of which are true.

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*meant purposely screwed Detroit because Dallas would bring better better ratings.

Bobhaze said:

I’ve always believed a losing culture cultivates excuses. When your team loses you have to be accountable for why you lost. You lost because you didn’t make enough plays to win.

The refs make bad calls both ways. The numbers bear that out. A winning culture overcomes badcalls, bad plays, bad luck, whatever stands in the way. Winners win because they make it happen. Losers lose, not because they got cheated, but because they weren’t good enough when it counted.

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It’s too easy to say “the refs make bad calls both ways”

Thats obviously true and well covered.

What I and many others complain about is the rarity and timing of some calls: Illegally huddled, false start on DEFENSE, false start on long snapper, unsportsmanlike on head coach for yelling, long streaks of very few holds(that one season), tripping calls on All Pros that weren’t close, Dez catch, I think I’m missing a couple others—maybe.

The point is. Those calls are just weird. And they’ve all happened to one team. Which makes it more weird. IMO.

So the refs are not out to get the Cowboys? What have y'all been watching?











https://youtu.be/SuVWQqEf3Jk

https://youtu.be/Q6vk3r5sqe0

https://youtu.be/NrJ370TpLFw

There is more if you need to see more.

Sometimes all the whining from this fanbase makes me think Jerry should change the name to the Dallas Cryboys.

I hope the players are mentally tougher than a lot of you and don’t use excuses every time they lose or go into every game with the “poor us” attitude. Always playing the victim is a loser mentality.

Mr_C said:

It’s too easy to say “the refs make bad calls both ways”

Thats obviously true and well covered.

What I and many others complain about is the rarity and timing of some calls: Illegally huddled, false start on DEFENSE, false start on long snapper, unsportsmanlike on head coach for yelling, long streaks of very few holds(that one season), tripping calls on All Pros that weren’t close, Dez catch, I think I’m missing a couple others—maybe.

The point is. Those calls are just weird. And they’ve all happened to one team. Which makes it more weird. IMO.

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Yep. All true. Those were ridiculously bad calls. And rare. There is no question the NFL needs to improve the quality of its officiating. But that’s for everyone.

One of my brothers in law lives in Denver and he’s a huge broncos fan. He is often on a fan forum like ours for bronco fans. He says the fans there complain all the time about bad calls and their “timing” in a game. We laugh a lot about how blinded fans are to why their team loses a game.

There are 32 fan bases in the NFL. I’m sure they would all tell us how often their favorite team has been screwed by the refs. It’s what fans do.

Mr_C said:

It’s too easy to say “the refs make bad calls both ways”

Thats obviously true and well covered.

What I and many others complain about is the rarity and timing of some calls: Illegally huddled, false start on DEFENSE, false start on long snapper, unsportsmanlike on head coach for yelling, long streaks of very few holds(that one season), tripping calls on All Pros that weren’t close, Dez catch, I think I’m missing a couple others—maybe.

The point is. Those calls are just weird. And they’ve all happened to one team. Which makes it more weird. IMO.

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So what other team do you watch as intently as the Cowboys?

America's Cowboy said:

So the refs are not out to get the Cowboys? What have y'all been watching?











https://youtu.be/SuVWQqEf3Jk

https://youtu.be/Q6vk3r5sqe0

https://youtu.be/NrJ370TpLFw

There is more if you need to see more.

Click to expand...

https://youtu.be/nNoo-car27A
https://youtu.be/Bb0QdG5ta6Q
https://youtu.be/aySEeHg9Ke0
https://youtu.be/MCcabDBDC2s

Bobhaze said:

Yep. All true. Those were ridiculously bad calls. And rare. There is no question the NFL needs to improve the quality of its officiating. But that’s for everyone.

One of my brothers in law lives in Denver and he’s a huge broncos fan. He is often on a fan forum like ours for bronco fans. He says the fans there complain all the time about bad calls and their “timing” in a game. We laugh a lot about how blinded fans are to why their team loses a game.

There are 32 fan bases in the NFL. I’m sure they would all tell us how often their favorite team has been screwed by the refs. It’s what fans do.

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All true for you too. Except, all those rare bad calls happened to us. Not the Broncos or Colts or...

Maybe I’ve missed some rare ones for other teams. I have asked for examples because that’s what people usually say and I don’t get any. Or I get one that’s not really comparable to any of those.

I mean the illegal huddle was called one other time since 83. That’s rare and unique to us and the Skins. Ironically, we were playing them. I wonder if it cost them a very long gain that could’ve changed the whole momentum of the game.

As always I highly respect your thoughtful analysis and opinions Bob.

Mr_C said:

All true for you too. Except, all those rare bad calls happened to us. Not the Broncos or Colts or...

Maybe I’ve missed some rare ones for other teams. I have asked for examples because that’s what people usually say and I don’t get any. Or I get one that’s not really comparable to any of those.

I mean the illegal huddle was called one other time since 83. That’s rare and unique to us and the Skins. Ironically, we were playing them. I wonder if it cost them a very long gain that could’ve changed the whole momentum of the game.

As always I highly respect your thoughtful analysis and opinions Bob.

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Maybe you don't get examples because no one watches or roots for other teams and thus aren't emotionally invested enough to bend reality like some Cowboys fans would to find an excuse.

Now I always ask for how often the no holding penalties thing happens in the NFL from that year because that would truly show rarity if there was. Funny, I NEVER get an answer because CONSPIRACY! never does proof. So I went looking and lo and behold the Detroit Lions had a similar streak THAT VERY SAME YEAR. I busted another guy LYING that a streak like that only happened 2 times ever before. When people have to do that, the "theory" just isn't true. Lol.

And people always try to act like officials wait to see if a good play happens for us before they'll throw a flag to add whiny drama. For the Butler call, I explained on Page 5 that this was an at the snap penalty, so as soon as the ball was snapped the flag was out. Again, the bench could have called a timeout but surely they have no responsibility at all and it's the big bad officials out to get us.

Never bought into that, but watching as a Cowboys fan last year was the worst I can recall in recent history.

Most games we play in, our fans are convinced the refs are trying to screw us and cost us the game... and other teams' fans are convinced the refs are trying to help us and keep us in the game.

Am I allowed to mention gamblers influencing the outcomes of games?

I endeavor not to be naive.

Now to read that which has gone before.

Cowboy Lover said:

Okay...you can use hyperbole and exaggeration if you wish. BUT if you think for one second Refs can't affect a a game,. intentional; or not...then you are , with all due respect....a.....a..... freakin idiot.

Refs wrong decisions have cost teams games. Even us. Even other teams

Refs CAN and WILL determine the winner of the game Does it matter if it was subliminal; or intentional ? Either Way is unacceptable.

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This is what is correct. The Saints got majorly hozed in that NFC Championship where the Ram player got away with blatant pass interference. The worst call I've ever seen in all my years of watching football went against the Packers. It was in that game against the Seahawks in about 2013 or '14 I think. It was a game with replacement refs, but that's no excuse. Wilson could win the game in the last seconds if he completed a Hail Mary to the endzone. The Packer player intercepted it, but the Seahawks' Golden Tate had his arms on the ball at first, but the Packer player pulled it away from him. It should have been game over, Packer win.

But you're right. There have been a lot of blown calls that are not acceptable. I personally strongly doubt there's any kind of conspiracy. There are just mistakes that can unjustly hurt a team. The NFL has considered using a "sky judge" who watches replays from a booth above and can signal down to the field to reverse a call, but there are big pluses and minuses of doing that.

SSoup said:

Most games we play in, our fans are convinced the refs are trying to screw us and cost us the game... and other teams' fans are convinced the refs are trying to help us and keep us in the game.

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Our fans also accuse the officials of helping the Giants, Philly and Washington when they watch their games solely because their winning would hurt us, lol. It really is little kid logic when you think about it.

An observation about sports in general in the last 20 years: Because of advances in technology, an increasing number of fans seem to be expecting near perfection when it comes to fairness in calling a game. Yes, we should expect absolute fairness at all times, but there are two things to remember about that:

1. As long as human beings are involved in regulating a game or any other endeavors mistakes will be made. The goal is to minimize mistakes to make the games as fair as possible. But as long as we have human officials, there will be blown calls.

2. As much as we want it to be completely fair, life itself is full of unexpected twists, turns and occasional moments of disappointment and unfairness.

That’s why the best teams and individual athletes that consistently win are mentally tough. They don’t stay focused on the bad calls, dropped passes, poor plays, etc. Winners always find a way to win. Even when things go against them. Great coaches never accept excuses or place blame on anyone or anything outside of the team and it’s ability to control its own destiny.

Bad calls happen in sports. Surprise! We're going to get our share of bad calls from the refs every year! The real question will be, how well can our team overcome adversity by making plays when they’re needed?

One of the problems with penalties is there are too many of them in the rule book.
Let the refs call the game like it was 50 years ago.

Red Dragon said:

I'm sure this has been mentioned before, but I've never seen a quarterback declared sacked by his own teammate (La'el Collins in the Rams playoff game.)

I've said it before and I will say it again: The NFL is going against its own interests by targeting Dallas this way. The Cowboys are the biggest cash cow in the NFL and draw better ratings than anyone else. If the NFL wants to be self-destructive by biting the hand that feeds, so be it.

I'm not asking for favorable officiating, mind you - just asking for a level playing field.

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I have started to think that it makes total sense to influence Cowboys games more than others. If you look at it from a business standpoint, the Cowboys fans aren’t going anywhere. They have our money regardless of how they do. Other teams however don’t naturally bring in the money so the NFL gets a spike in revenue when a team like Seattle, Los Angeles or Atlanta shows signs of hope and success and pumps up the average population in those cities. Their teams do better, their fans run out and buy more merchandise/ticket sales.

dargonking999 said:

All I know is that a phantom tripping call on a critical 3rd down late in the 4th quarter on the road, that essentially ended a chance to win the game will always look like bias.

The number of penalties is not the issue, its when they are called, and the quality of the call.

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Two made up triping calls.... in the same damn game.

Right, and Dez didn't make that catch.