Does the NFL really have it out for the 'Boys?

[AbeBeta]

It is referred to the Roy Williams rule by other NFL fans/media, not just the Cowboys fans.

One such rule could be coincidental; however, having multiple rules for players on the same team is not coincidence.

Roy Williams
Erik Williams
Michael Irvin
Emmitt Smith

The ordeal with the cap penalty was definitely pushed through by Mara of the Giants. That's not anybody's imagination.

Ken Stabler rule
Lester Hayes rule

There are two right there.

And let's look at some of these rules. Tony Romo rule - changed the way kicking balls were handled. There's a rule in response to something that hurt us. Mel Renfro rule - allowing for offensive player to catch passes tipped by another offensive player. Why is this one named after a Cowboy? Because of a call in a superbowl - prominent call, prominent game (that should start to give you a hint as to why we have some rules named after us).

I think the issue is that we are on TV more and get more coverage. Pre-internet that was a really super big deal and it drove many of the rule changes.

 

[Jstopper]

To the ones that say the league is not against the cowboys, can you name a single penalty any professional sports league has applied to any team that is as absurd as the cap penalty on the Cowboys?

Let's look at the facts of the cap penalty:
1. There was no CBA and no Cap at the time. So there was no rule preventing a team from going over a specific amount. The cowboys did not break any rules.
2. The league approved the contracts. If a rule was broken, why approve them??
3. The league sent teams letters warning them that they should not structure contracts so that they would take advantage of the uncapped year. However, if there is no CBA, the NFL has no capacity to order teams to spend less. In fact, if there is no CBA, ordering teams to treat the year as a normal capped year would be collusion. It is illegal.
4. Mara said we broke the spirit of the rule. This is such nonsense I don't know where to begin. Teams need to follow official rules, not some "spirit of a rule" whatever that means.

Seriously, can anyone point to another professional league that has done something like this?

The Lakers and Hornets had agreed on a trade to sent Chris Paul to LA. The general managers agreed and the trade was in place. The commissioner of the nba (who also owned the Hornets) vetoed the trade saying it wouldn't be fair to the rest of the league, kobe and Chris Paul on the same team. Til this day it is still one of the most horrible biased complete bs crap I have ever seen pulled in a professional league

 

[DallasEast]

Gimme a break. That was a rule implemented for safety reasons - and wisely so. Before 2004, we would occasionally (but rarely) see a horse collar tackle until Roy Williams came along and purposefully made that move part of his regular repertoire.

I cannot stand Terrell Owens but that tackle is dangerous and it should be illegal.

It's a good rule but players had been horse collaring more often than occasionally or rarely. The instances did not stand out as blatantly because players were rarely as aggressive as Roy Williams tackling a ball carrier. Williams used his entire body to manuever in close and used strength and weight practically underneath the ball carrier to tackle straight down to the field. Other tacklers would often grab the back of the shoulder pads and yank or grab hold of another part of the ball carrier at the same time.

Was the horse collar tackle being used frequently or regularly? No. Was it used occasionally or rarely? No. The actual usage fell somewhere inbetween.

 

[xwalker]

I'm sorry I don't buy it for one second that anyone is out to get the Cowboys. As for Hardy no body wanted him, he posted great number you would think teams would have been stepping over each other to sign a guy like him but no one did. Cowboys knew what they were getting into this has nothing to do with some woman who is a giants fan or some hate of the Cowboys.

I can't live in some paranoid world you guys live in, it is foolishness.

Maybe the concept of bias and conflict of interest is to complicated for you to understand.

 

[Corso]

I don't know but whenever I see your user name, I can't get those old commercials out of my head where it's like, "the touch, the feel of cotton... the fabric of our lives!"

I actually am reminded of that frightening Star Wars Christmas Special all those decades ago...
I dare anyone to load up on shrooms and watch that sucker from front to back... I ended up building myself a giant fortress out of the sofa cushions and pillows and anything else I could get my hands on to protect myself from the insanity!

 

[Doomsday101]

Maybe the concept of bias and conflict of interest is to complicated for you to understand.

If you choose to think the NFL is out to get the Cowboys fine believe as you choose, I don't buy into your paranoid BS. It is beyond childish

 

[Rogah]

To the ones that say the league is not against the cowboys, can you name a single penalty any professional sports league has applied to any team that is as absurd as the cap penalty on the Cowboys?

Actually, yes I can. But I don't really want to get into that here.

 

[xwalker]

Ken Stabler rule
Lester Hayes rule

There are two right there.

And let's look at some of these rules. Tony Romo rule - changed the way kicking balls were handled. There's a rule in response to something that hurt us. Mel Renfro rule - allowing for offensive player to catch passes tipped by another offensive player. Why is this one named after a Cowboy? Because of a call in a superbowl - prominent call, prominent game (that should start to give you a hint as to why we have some rules named after us).

I think the issue is that we are on TV more and get more coverage. Pre-internet that was a really super big deal and it drove many of the rule changes.

If you don't believe that bias and conflict of interest exists, then you are being naive. The salary cap penalty is the easiest one to see. The Cowboys and Skins were screwed by a penalty that is well known to have been pushed through by Mara of the Giants. The did not break any rules but got penalized anyway.

It was no coincidence that Mara is in NYC and was the primary force behind the penalty.

It's not just the Cowboys that get screwed. The Saints had major penalties for bounty gate including the Head Coach being suspended for an entire year despite it being a 1st time offense for the team. The Patriots have had multiple offenses of cheating and got less punishment than the the Saints in most peoples opinions. Either Brady didn't know about the deflated balls and should not be penalized OR he did know and should out for a year like the Saints Head Coach.

 

[xwalker]

If you choose to think the NFL is out to get the Cowboys fine believe as you choose, I don't buy into your paranoid BS. It is beyond childish

I don't care about the opinions of the lower 50% like you.

 

[Doomsday101]

I don't care about the opinions of the lower 50% like you.

Good I'm glad, now go put your foil cap on since they are after you.

 

[JackOfNoTrades]

Add in the " Helmet Rule" - Emmitt Smith

Hitting defenseless receiver ( may be wrong on this one ) Darren Woodson

isn't there a MBIII rule too where you're allowed to tackle by a players hair? Or is that Ricky Williams......

 

[xwalker]

Actually, yes I can. But I don't really want to get into that here.

Name one in football, baseball or basketball. If you don't name it then it does not exist.

Nobody gives a rip about any Soccer BS or other non top 3 sports.

 

[AbeBeta]

If you don't believe that bias and conflict of interest exists, then you are being naive. The salary cap penalty is the easiest one to see. The Cowboys and Skins were screwed by a penalty that is well known to have been pushed through by Mara of the Giants. The did not break any rules but got penalized anyway.

It was no coincidence that Mara is in NYC and was the primary force behind the penalty.

It's not just the Cowboys that get screwed. The Saints had major penalties for bounty gate including the Head Coach being suspended for an entire year despite it being a 1st time offense for the team. The Patriots have had multiple offenses of cheating and got less punishment than the the Saints in most peoples opinions. Either Brady didn't know about the deflated balls and should not be penalized OR he did know and should out for a year like the Saints Head Coach.

So if it isn't just the Cowboys getting screwed, then doesn't that deflate the argument that the Cowboys are getting screwed?

If many teams are getting severe penalties, it seems clear that no one team is a target.

 

[xwalker]

Good I'm glad, now go put your foil cap on since they are after you.

At least my house is not made of tin like your trailer.

 

[JoeKing]

I'm sorry I just do not think the NFL is out to get the Cowboys. In no way would it benefit the league. Sometimes in life things do not go your way

No one is saying it benefits the league. You are missing the point. The powers that be in the NFL FO take pleasure in sticking to the Cowboys every chance they can get away with. I think the person behind it all has the last name Mara... just my opinion.

 

[Rogah]

Name one in football, baseball or basketball. If you don't name it then it does not exist.

Since you're demanding an answer, I will make one post about this subject and not respond any further. The facts are these:

A) The League announced that if they gave players obscenely front loaded contracts during the uncapped year, those 1st year salaries would essentially be treated as signing bonuses if/when the cap returned. The Cowboys gave an obscenely front loaded contract to a player, and the league made them treat it like a signing bonus.

BTW, you seem unaware they hit the Commanders for over 3 times the penalty they hit the Cowboys for. So it's pretty weak to say that the Cowboys got the single most egregious penalty in league history when someone else got 3 times the punishment for the same violation.

B) One team engages in something which is, at the very worst, an equipment violation. They got a 14 week investigation that didn't even really prove anything conclusively, got fined $1 million, lost a 1st rounder, lost a 4th rounder, and had their starting QB suspended 4 games.

So Commanders and Patriots fans invite you to cry a river over a 1 year, $10 million cap penalty which really didn't do anything but make some of the front loaded money they gave Austin count against a subsequent cap year.

 

[BoysFan4ever]

Actually, yes I can. But I don't really want to get into that here.

Yes please don't. Most of us know what you would say.

Too late. You already did.

 

[xwalker]

So if it isn't just the Cowboys getting screwed, then doesn't that deflate the argument that the Cowboys are getting screwed?

If many teams are getting severe penalties, it seems clear that no one team is a target.

The point is that there is a North East Bias centered in NYC.

In real life they wound not have the owner of Ford Lovers magazine investigating General Motors; however, the NFL appoints a die hard Giants fan to investigate Hardy. There are thousands of lawyers available that are not NFL fans. It would have been easy to get one of those to do the investigation.

 

[BigStar]

Since you're demanding an answer, I will make one post about this subject and not respond any further. The facts are these:

A) The League announced that if they gave players obscenely front loaded contracts during the uncapped year, those 1st year salaries would essentially be treated as signing bonuses if/when the cap returned. The Cowboys gave an obscenely front loaded contract to a player, and the league made them treat it like a signing bonus.

BTW, you seem unaware they hit the Commanders for over 3 times the penalty they hit the Cowboys for. So it's pretty weak to say that the Cowboys got the single most egregious penalty in league history when someone else got 3 times the punishment for the same violation.

B) One team engages in something which is, at the very worst, an equipment violation. They got a 14 week investigation that didn't even really prove anything conclusively, got fined $1 million, lost a 1st rounder, lost a 4th rounder, and had their starting QB suspended 4 games.

So Commanders and Patriots fans invite you to cry a river over a 1 year, $10 million cap penalty which really didn't do anything but make some of the front loaded money they gave Austin count against a subsequent cap year.

You conveniently overlooked the post regarding revenue sharing (discussion ended) Rattle on...

 

[Silver N Blue]

Only Dallas and Washington were penalized cap space relative to the uncapped year.

The Erik Williams rule.

The Michael rule.

The Roy (Safety) Williams rule.

It's not just Cowboys fans that refer to those rules by the name of the player. It is common knowledge that those rules were put in place to limit those specific players.

The Catch and Hardy are minor compared to the other issues like the ones listed above.

The Emmitt Rule taking off your helmet after a TD....