Would you still be a Cowboys fan if league was rigged?

[Diehardblues]

Me too. In a heartbeat. If I thought outcomes of games were being rigged or decided by anyone other than players and coaches, I would be gone as well.

No doubt. I think most would be .

But while we agree there is no malicious or criminal intent for officials to throw games we must also acknowledge that their judgements can certainly impact the results which fuels the discontent and frustration.

The difference in some fans is we accept this impact is part of the game not intent to throw the game.

 

[DripTooHard]

If I truly thought the NFL was rigged I would stop watching

We actually don‘t watch with emotional investment. The wife and I have been watching for decades and our fandom died for good on the Dez call in Green Bay in the 2014 playoffs. We have a good laugh these days because penalties and ref involvement have become so predictable. Dak breaks the pocket on 2nd and long and runs for a first? Here comes the flag on Tyler Smith or Steele.

 

[Pola_pe_a]

I think big part of the “officiating“ problem is people don’t understand the rules and roles of refs.

People complain about missed calls and claim “there was a ref right there”. Fact is each Ref gets a certain area to watch I.e. o line and they aren’t going to be looking at other areas.
Offensive holding is also completely misunderstood by most fans. The NFL changed what’s considered a hold a couple years ago when they started allowing Green Bay’s “bear hug” technique, O-lineman are now are allowed to place their hands outside the frame and on the shoulder pads, It looks like a hold but it’s not. In the past anytime your hands got outside the frame a flag was coming that’s no longer a flag.

 

[Irvin88_4life]

This play pisses me off every time I watch it.... Refs ignored at least 1 hold and a block in the back on this return.

Yes sir, I'm with you on that

 

[Irvin88_4life]

I hadn't heard that, but I don't doubt it. The Cards/Steelers super bowl was a joke. Cards won that game, n the refs called a penalty to give the Steelers another chance. The Roughing call was ridiculous as Warner had been taking harder and later hits all game that weren't called.

It was the one before that one. I believe it was against Seattle

 

[Darkhound]

Deep deep inside I DO think it is rigged. Like many other things

 

[acr731]

The NFL would cease to exist if it gets caught manipulating games.

Vegas sportsbooks would line up along with every aggrieved bettor to sue the hell out of the league
Congress would attack all the special provisions the NFL has.
Even individual cities might sue for loss of potential revenue.

The lost would go on and on of people and groups looking to take down the NFL, This is the main reason the NFL was so concerned with gambling, Any potential impropriety could take the whole league down.

This is why the ”league is rigged” conspiracy makes zero sense, The NFL has literally nothing to gain and everything to lose manipulating games,

The bold is true, but sports betting could influence outcomes. The referees aren't employees of the NFL, so are they held to the same standards as the employees where gambling is prohibited? Even then, there isn't anything preventing the ref from having friends or associates place bets on games they are officiating and sharing in the profits. You can get away with it if you cover your tracks good enough.

Would these games be deemed 'manipulated'? Absolutely.

I'm not saying I believe this is happening, nor do I have proof of it. But never underestimate the lengths some people will go to in the name of greed.

 

[Irvin88_4life]

Was one that highly dubious pass interference call on Dallas paving the way for Pittsburgh's '79 SB win?

I was happy we got some what revenge against them in the 90s.

One Superbowl in the 70s against Pittsburgh would have had Dallas as the team of the 70s and 90s

 

[Creeper]

I don't think the league is rigged. Do I believe Goodell has biases? Yes. Do I believe the refs have biases? Yes. After all they are only human like the rest of us. But I do not think the league is acting to get one team or another to the Super Bowl. If evidence came out that the league was rigged, I would hope the league or congress, would act to clean it up and penalize all those who rigged it. I would stay a Cowboys fan though the cleanup. But I would sue or encourage a class action lawsuit against the NFL for a return of all the money I paid for NFL ticket when I was a subscriber.

Having said that, the league has an officiating problem. The refs are awful and everyone sees it. I think the problem is not just part time refs. It is part time refs with complicated rules that leave a lot of calls to the judgement of the refs.

IMO, they need to go through the rulebook and look to rewrite the rules so that refs have an easier time calling penalties or letting them play.

Let's take pass interference and illegal contact, for example. They can change the rule to make any intentional contact past 5 yards illegal and a 5 yard penalty. If the ball is in the air, whether it is catchable or not, it becomes PI.

Offensive holding can be changed to allow grabbing as long as the arms are not wrapped about the defender. We see them let this go most of the time anyway. It is silly to say that grabbing a guy in front of you inside the shoulders is okay (even though the rules says its not really), but if he doesn't let go when the guy changes direction then it's holding. The whole point of grabbing the rusher by the pads is to keep him in front of you and materially restrict his path.

I am not saying I advocate for these changes. I am saying that asking part time refs to make judgement calls leads to mistakes, and inconsistency around the league. It is the inconsistency that people really react to.

 

[Jipper]

Just warch this week there will be 5 holding calls against the ol blocking micha

 

[BBGTYCOON]

I've already said several times that no matter how good we may be, there is NO WAY the league office will ever let us win a Super Bowl....especially while The Goon is still the commissioner. Why is Philly all of a sudden getting all of the calls that Green Bay got for years? They do NOT want us to win the division and have any shot at a high seed....this isn't just by accident folks.

 

[DripTooHard]

Just warch this week there will be 5 holding calls against the ol blocking micha

And 10 against the Cowboys OL because that’s how the NFL proves a point.

 

[SteveTheCowboy]

Deep deep inside I DO think it is rigged. Like many other things

Yep...it seems EVERYthing is rigged. Usually about the money.

 

[BrassCowboy]

In no fashion is the league rigged, but do we get our fair share of bad calls? Yup. This could be because of the constant moaning by our players, but we are also looking out for bad calls. I watch far too much Football and can tell you the refs this year are particularly awful and horrible, and this is shared by every analyst/journalist in the world

yeah it may not be rigged, but the game has gotten so out of wack due to bad play calling, it kind of feels like it is.

 

[jazzcat22]

I would not say rigged as to any predetermined team will win the SB before the season begins. However during the season it seems very odd certain teams gets the calls for years and years.
As mentioned, GB, and Pittsburgh. But it is also the non calls, or the obvious ones missed.

Funny how the Eagles basically have 5 wins this season from calls and non calls in their favor.
Even at that, there is probably not a conspiracy that says...we want them to win.

However, there is no way that anyone can say with a straight face, some of the refs are not biased. They too were kids and had favorite teams, and still do. As well as family members.
So a missed call or questionable call here and there is not out of the question. We all seen it far too often not to feel and think that way.

 

[Flamma]

There’s been so much talk over the officiating this year . But my bigger question is why would you be a fan of the NFL if thought it was rigged or fake ?

No. I wouldn't watch another game.

 

[Blast From The Past]

It is a BIG difference between thinking it possibly could be rigged and or manipulated than actually knowing it. Someone once told me the word gullible wasn't in the dictionary. I suspected the WWE was fake but was a faithful watcher until it came out to be all entertainment which is in the NFL CHARTER as well. So if you believe it is all real then keep believing. The NFL entertains me more now than ever, oh the weekly drama intrigues with the constant story lines involved. But I watch the NFL for the competition and if I flat out knew it wasn't honestly a competition but somehow rigged I would kick it to the curb just like I did the WWE back in the day. They can have drama as long as the game itself is real and fairly refereed. That's all I ask for it to be. The fairly refereed part is very much in question on many games the past several years. Whether it is bias or referees being compromised or whatever the case may be it needs to stop because this great game is getting ruined by it.

 

[TheCritic]

I suppose I should be rooting for a clean game, but part of me wishes the NFL would stop pretending. Just like the WWF would tell fans in the 80s that pro wrestling wasn't fake. But once they stopped pretending that it wasn't pure entertainment, then the product became even better. I like my villains front and center! The NFL should do the same thing!

 

[BleedSilverandBlue]

There’s been so much talk over the officiating this year . But my bigger question is why would you be a fan of the NFL if thought it was rigged or fake ?

Questionable and poor officiating has always been part of the game . In real time it’s often difficult to see very angle . I have a brother in law who did officiating at amateur level and said they simply don’t always see these happening in real time .

The only answer is reviewing every play which surely no one really wants . It’s already dumbing down having to review every TD and catch. Does the game really have to be perfection.

Regardless the sport whether it’s a ball or strike , a personal foul or holding and interference there is a judgement in play based on how they see or don’t see it.

But to suggest without any other evidence that multiple slow-mo camera footage officials aren’t privy to in real time . Over the years we’ve never had any whistle blower , a disgruntled former official or employee , not one bit of evidence of any official or crews of any personal or organized collusion to rig or throw games .

All we have is camera footage after the fact. And of course very frustrated fans who are beside themselves with calls which appear so obvious on camera .

I’m sorry but until further evidence that footage after the fact I’m going to call it more sour grapes which I’m not saying isn’t justified but calling it rigged is baseless . And if they truly believe the league is rigged then why so much vested interest in a fake sport ?

Considering that I am a huge WWE fan, 100% yes.

If the league was rigged they would be able to put together some pretty fun storylines.

 

[Blast From The Past]

This could be because of the constant moaning by our players, but we are also looking out for bad calls.

In what world do you live in that it makes it right to penalize or choose to not penalize a player based on what they say on social media or to reporters?