Is the NFL and its refs out to "get us"?

[BigRedChief]

You conspiracy nuts need to stop this crap.The game wasn't fixed. This poor old me routine on here is getting old.



The NFL loves the Chiefs and Mahomes. They are the exact team they want playing in the NFL. GMF is nothing but a Mahomes lovefest every morning. All of the NFL network shows tout Mahomes and the Chiefs offense. They flexed us into two straight weeks on SNF. Its so obvious other teams fans are bitching about the constant Mahomes/Chiefs love fest.But, they are out to get us?

Another one is the NFL doesnt want a small market winning the SB. Are these conspiracy nuts paying attention? Small markets don't matter if your the big dog. Rogers in GB, Manning in Indy, Hello....evidence you can see with your own eyes.

With all this evidence we can see on a daily basis, somehow you get the idea that the NFL wants the Chiefs to lose. That makes no sense. They are not out to "get us". The NFL is promoting the shit out of us on a daily basis. This conspiracy BS is just that, BS.

[FAX]

Originally Posted by Fish

Absolutely. There were tons of calls that were clearly in the Chiefs' favor last night that could have been called differently. Nobody seems to want to admit that though...

The ol' "two wrongs" argument. C'mon, Mr. Fish ...

Listen, if the games are officiated consistently and fairly, I have no problem. Never have had.

But I have to question the motivation of anyone who doesn't recognize how badly that crew called that game last night. The tipped pass. The INT/TD that had to be actually "reviewed". The call against Tyreek for taunting vs. the forearm shiver by Suh to Mahomes' head ... I can go on and on.

That was a very poorly officiated game, my friend ... by any reasonable standard of measure.

FAX

[chiefzilla1501]

Originally Posted by RunKC

FWIW James Jones on NFLN said he thought they called that penalty on Tyreek because he was looking right at the defender when he threw up his peace sign.

I still don’t like that call.

The NFL needs to get rid of taunting except for severe cases. Period.

Protecting the passing game to create more offense at least has a purpose. There is no reason whatsoever for this shit-for-brains rule.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by Eleazar

Hill was obviously taunting the defender as he went into the end zone. He's no stranger to unsportsmanlike conduct flags after scoring.

Exactly. He's been toeing the line with his TD celebrations for weeks. Jumping in to the stands, taking over the camera. I mean, it's hilarious to watch. But he's already gotten flags for his post-TD actions. Refs are going to remember that kind of thing.

[MVChiefFan]

Originally Posted by ChiTown

My point is that he's never, to my knowledge, received a PI for doing that in a defenders face in the past. But now, in the biggest non-playoff game of the year, it's a problem. How about the refs use a little restraint. If they don't like it, then they go over to the Coach or player and tell them they'll get flagged if they do it again.

The all-star ref crew tried to be the show last night. They sucked at their jobs, and it took away from what should have been a great game. And no, I don't for a minute think that the refs or league are out to get the Chiefs. I'm not that guy....

This is kind of how I feel. It’s something that is his signature celebration that the league has approved of. There’s room for the ref to let it go but then warn him about doing it directly in someone’s face.

[Chief_N_Bama]

Hello, All! New poster here!

I’ve never been a believer in conspiracy theories, sports or otherwise, but last night has definitely got me reassessing that. I have never watched a game with as many “WTF” calls (or no calls) in my life, and living in Alabama I watch A LOT OF FOOTBALL. I have to either believe that a hand-picked “All-Star” team NFL referees were just totally in incompetent, or that there was a finger on the scale. The evidence, while circumstantial, has me leaning to the latter explanation.

[Bwana]

No, but with that said, there have been some really crappy calls that I have seen this year. The NFL needs to step up and hire full time officials, as in that's their only job. Pay them a decent wage and let them do their thing, the NFL can afford it.

These, all star mix and match crews, where they are not used to working with each other, are a load of crap. Pick a normal crew and let them officiate the game.

[Otter]

First off, I'm going to begin this blog by stating that I don't have any intentions on changing anyone's mind about the NFL. Nor am I trying to start an argument about who is right and who is wrong.

I already know everyone's argument of "It takes too many people to rig a game", and the all time classic with no viable facts, "They make too much money, why would they jeopardize it?" Arguing about the nature of such things is like arguing about religion and politics. There is no point.

I'm just going to point out several observations I have made over the last few years about the NFL and state my case for why I think the NFL fixes their own games for profit. So if you are already on the defensive ready to discredit all of the evidence I am about display without actually bringing up facts that go against my arguments (like a normal discussion should be) then move on.

So if you have any documented facts, I would like to hear them. If you agree with me afterwards great, if you don't that's cool too, follow me on Twitter @shark702 and we can continue the discussion there. But again, let's talk, not insult each other. If you are the type of person who hates being lied to, was upset to find out as a kid that Santa wasn't real and that WWE is fake than please read on and I would love to hear your opinions.

OK, so if you are ready to take the Red Pill, let's see how deep the rabbit hole goes...

I've been handicapping the NFL for about 10 years now using mathematical analysis of teams, point spreads, specific outcomes and algebra, specifically relating to the calculation of probability where P(X=K)=(n/k)P^k(q)(n-k) and (n/k) = n!/k!(n-k)!, accounting for injuries, and incorporating Power Ratings which I developed from a simple Grade Scale A-F with the best NFL team receiving an A and the worst receiving an F. I was able to amass several consistent 60% ATS betting seasons. This process I found to be long and arduous and caused me great mental stress after a certain period of time.

But one day, during the 2009 season, something happened that changed it all. Now I've had my share of bad beats up until then. Some of these bad beats were too good to be true i.e The Tuck Rule Game. Several coincidences happened that just seemed to good to be true. The New England Patriots post 9/11 run, the Saints erasing 40 years of negative football history post Katrina, the Manning Families dynasty, just to name a few.

Now if you believe in random coincidence that's fine, but when they happen on multiple occasions over and over and over than it's time to do a little research. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said "Shallow men believe in Luck, strong men believe in cause and effect".

So during a game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the San Diego Chargers the Steelers were favored by 3. Nearly 70 percent of the betting public was on Pittsburgh, with a reported $100 million in potential earnings. The score with less than a minute to go, 11-10 Pittsburgh and SD with the ball. After an errant lateral gets knocked away by Troy Polamalu, he scoops it and scores. The score is now 17-10, there is no time left, all teams head to the locker room, fans go to cash their tickets.

After several minutes of debate, the refs overturn the call, restoring a meaningless TD off the board making the final score 11-10, the Steelers win, the public loses. What I found to be most odd about it is the league's explanation of a "forward pass". The pass was ruled forward although it is obvious it was a backwards lateral. When I got home, I starting thinking that things were just to good to be true.

Sportscenter reported the money lost in Vegas and almost joked about it. They were literally laughing. So after this bad beat, I held around some serious thoughts about the legitimacy of pro football.

An opportunity came up in my graduate school where I was to write my project on any topic I was to choose. So I chose researching the "Showbiz manipulations of the NFL". I picked up several books including Dan Moldea's "Interference: How Organized Crimes Influence Professional Football", Brian Touhy's "The Fix Is In" , Roger L. Martins "Fixing the Game". I checked out several TV Marketing books from the college library and also several TV Business books.

I utilized my rights under the Freedom of Information Act passed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966 to access over 40 years of FBI files on the NFL although some information was redacted. Here's what I found:

1. Contrary to popular belief and to what he NFL wants you to think, there have been fixed games in league history. On page 308 of Dan Moldea's book "Interference" he lists over 70 NFL games that have been fixed and includes the names of the 2 referees involved in fixing those games. He also lists interviews with NFL HOF players most notably KC Chiefs QB Len Dawson. He, in detail with documented facts supported by FBI documents, has interviews with NFL players and known gambling associates to uncover massive game fixing in the league. He also notes, with evidence, throughout the book that no fewer than 26 NFL team owners have or have had continuous and developing relationships with the gambling world, most notably the Rooney, Bidwill, and Mara families all getting their starts as Bookmakers for established mid-west crime families and buying their NFL franchises with moneys earned from gambling. So that in and of itself is a hypocrisy number 1 on the NFL's "lilly white" reputation.

NFL Referees are part-time employees of the NFL. They are not employees of any team nor do they get paid anywhere close to the sums of NBA refs. NFL refs make between $25K to $70K per season. They work for the league and do what the league tells them to do. They are not there for "the integrity of the game". Referees, unlike other sports, are bound by NFL mandated gag orders which prevent them from talking to the media.

2. The NFL possesses an Anti-Trust Exemption to the law granted to it by President John F. Kennedy, which ultimately allows the NFL to classify itself as "entertainment" rather than sport, as well as incorporate itself as a single entity instead of the 32 separate "franchises" they would want you to believe. Contrary to the perception of the NFL being 32 separate franchises battling it out for gridiron supremacy. In a franchised environment, such as McDonalds (Business 101), each franchise is individually owned and operated and can participate in national promotions, have its own local promotions, or abstain from participating (hence the fine print in commercials saying "at participating locations".

This keeps the regionality of competition in tact without having to compete on a national level. MLB has this status, the NFL does not. Instead, since the NFL has this Anti-Trust exemption, it is able to package its teams in order to sell to national television companies, which today totals $6 Billion in revenue for the league. That is 75% of the leagues total annual revenue. In a 2004 lawsuit vs the NFL, the NFL attorney Gregg H. Levy argued that "the NFL is not a collection of 32 individual teams, but rather a single entity. And as long as the NFL teams are a unit, and they compete as a unit in the entertainment marketplace, then they should be deemed a single unit and not subject to any Anti-Trust laws."

There is only another "sports" organization that I can think of that follows this, the WWE. Levy also argued that the league markets its products and merchandise as a whole to promote the NFL as a whole. These arguments led all the way to lockout during the 2011 offseason. The league would still earn $5 Billion in revenue, even without a single game being played.

Professional sports is the only industry without ANY federal oversight. Therefore the league can do and go as they see fit, this is something the players were concerned about going into the lockout, the NFL players themselves sought help from US Congress asking for oversight of the NFL. And NFL players wanted an explanation as to why the NFL owners were granted an Anti-Trust exemption in the first place. They didn't get it.

The NFL proved in this lawsuit that they see themselves as a single unit in the "entertainment" industry and the unique league revenue sharing strategy is not common amongst professional sports leagues.

[staylor26]

Originally Posted by Eleazar

Hill was obviously taunting the defender as he went into the end zone. He's no stranger to unsportsmanlike conduct flags after scoring.

Find the nearest ****ing cliff and jump

[Chief_N_Bama]

Originally Posted by Fish

It wasn't the peace sign. Hill got right in the defenders face when he was doing it, and it was directly in front of the ref. It was the way he was directing it at the defender.

He turned to the defender behind him and threw the dueces, and he has done that several times. That’s kinda the point of the celebration. He’s telling the “bye”.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by Chief_N_Bama

He turned to the defender behind him and threw the dueces, and he has done that several times. That’s kinda the point of the celebration. He’s telling the “bye”.

This was different. He was right in the guy's face, and the ref was directly behind them.

[DeepPurple]

The only way that's an all-star crew is they grade them on the amount of penalties they throw and no so much on if they're correct. I rather have one of the terrible crews that keep the flags in their pocket and let the game move along. Nobody could get any rhythm last night, every play had something wrong. The NFL should worry more about keeping fans interest, that's why baseball suffers.

[Rain Man]

Okay, so I've given this issue a lot of thought over the past 45 seconds, and here's what I think.

First, the league has no vendetta against the Chiefs. They don't care about the Chiefs at all.

And that is precisely the problem. If you want clear proof, look at the playoff game last year. The league didn't care if the Chiefs lost or the Titans won. Both of those franchises are irrelevant to them, which is why they rewarded the worst referee in the league the game as a retirement gift instead of following their procedures and assigning refs to games based on their scoring. That's not opinion, right? Didn't the league or Triplette or someone come out and say that the game was a retirement farewell gift to Triplette?

So now let's ask ourselves. Would the league have assigned a known-to-be-subpar referee to a game with the Patriots or the Giants or another big market team? No way. They assigned Triplette to the Chiefs-Titans game because they didn't care about the Chiefs-Titans game, and they trusted the Triplette was at least competent enough to not make a scandal out of it. It turned out that they were wrong and he made a game-changing error that sent the wrong team to the next round, but whatever. Who cares. It was just the Chiefs and the Titans.

So then when you get to games like this, it's easy for a conspiracy theory to be built. There's a very strong business case to be made that the Los Angeles fan base needs to solidified. We all know Los Angeles. If their team gets behind by 10 points they're going to switch channels and watch a rerun of Breaking Bad or Entourage. I spend a lot of time in the LA area, and there's no sports culture there. It's hard to even find a sports bar that's any good. So a conspiracy theorist would say that the two Los Angeles teams need to win and be successful in their first few years in the city, or they'll fade to irrelevancy, which is why the Rams and Raiders (and even the Chargers in their first year) all left in the first place. Oh, and who's the other team in the big game? Kansas City? Meh, Kansas City doesn't matter. (Maybe that changes in the future with Patrick Mahomes II, but it clearly hasn't taken root yet.)

The game last night feeds conspiracy theories because the officiating was completely off the hook biased until the Rams got a 13 point lead. After that, it ratcheted back and was generally evenly called. Maybe that's a coincidence, but simple math (and a few reasonable assumptions) says that the odds are 1,024 to 1 against having one team called for the first 10 penalties of the game and other being called for zero. So yes, maybe it's a coincidence, but it's a rare one. Statistically, you would expect that to happen in one game leaguewide every four years, so it's going to happen, but not often.

The more charitable view, but still an evil one, is that the league wants offense. We know that the league wants offense. They were billing this game as a shootout all week, so if you're a business-oriented league, you tell the refs who are your employees to let the offenses play and be sure that we get some scoring early. This isn't even a conspiracy because it's not favoring one team over the other. It's a business decision, albeit an unethical one. I'd openly believe this, but the theory fell into question when the Chiefs' first offensive play was an 18 yard gain that was called back on a penalty that we never saw.

So yes, there are very clear business reasons for the NFL to want certain markets to do well at certain times (e.g., Los Angeles teams in the 2018-2020 time frame), and there are very clear business reasons for the NFL to want 24/7 offense. We're just supposed to have faith that the league will sacrifice those business interests in the short term to protect the long-term integrity of the sport. Look at Roger Goodell and raise your hand if you believe that he's going to do that. (And I still remember him telling a free agent, 'Why are you considering that small market team? You should be playing in New York.)

Now, are those pressures new? No. There have always been business interests competing with the integrity of the sport, all the way back to 1920. But the differences today are twofold - there's massive, massive money involved now, first and foremost. And second, because there's massive money, the ownership profile has changed. I would trust Lamar Hunt and George Halas and Paul Brown and Ralph Wilson to protect the integrity of the sport. I don't trust Robert Kraft and Stan Kroenke and Jerry Jones at all.

And then on top of all this, we have the problem of technology, which makes it much easier to be critical. In 1965, when the officials called a penalty, you just shrugged and said, "Dang. Penalty." You couldn't go back and see what happened. Now we can. Even if the game is clean as a whistle, there's going to be inconsistency in the officiating, and what's more, replays make the definition of penalties much more complex. Technology is the reason that we've seen endless debates over what is a catch, or what is control of a ball when a player goes over the goal line. The rules are necessarily becoming more complex, and that means that more penalties must be called and more judgments must be made in real time. And that's a major, major problem. If you believe the games are clean, what we're seeing is that human referees cannot judge the complexity of the game accurately in real time.

Even if we assume that the game is clean as a whistle and that everyone at every level of every organization is acting in the best interest of the sport, a very clear imperative is that we need to simplify the rules. Right now, roughly 10 percent of the plays on the field result in a penalty, and the number is rising. That cannot continue. We can't have games like last night where 30 percent of the first quarter's plays are the result of penalty calls. Not only does it damage the entertainment value, but it leads to inconsistency and the appearance of bias. If the league is pure and honest and clean, their next mission HAS to be changes to the game to simplify the rulebook.

Okay, that was rambling. I feel like the Unabomber now.

[Chief_N_Bama]

Originally Posted by Fish

This was different. He was right in the guy's face, and the ref was directly behind them.

It was “different” only in that the defender was closer than they usually are to Reek, but he turns and tosses the at the defender if they are still in pursuit. And in the context of the game it was especially questionable, especially when they (the refs) refrained from throwing similar flags against the Rams when they could have. The Suh hit comes immediately to mind. In this day and age of protecting the QB, the no call on the play is still mind boggling.

[Mecca]

That's it, they don't care about the Chiefs. The Chiefs are perfectly fine as long as they aren't playing a darling which is why we have all these heartbreaking loses.

I don't think they are out to get the Chiefs, I think they are out to push certain teams and the Chiefs are not and have never been one of those teams. Numerous other teams get jobbed in those games also, Jacksonville got jobbed yesterday, the Broncos overcame a job attempt.

The NFL doesn't even care if you know it because everyone keeps watching and there will always be people that defend refs or tell you you are a loser for bringing it up...this thread for example.

[Halfcan]

Nailed it! ^