Saints being officiated differently from opponents (1 Viewer)

[efil4stnias]

Thx so much for the great and revealing chart. This conversation really scares me. Is the system really rigged against our players and coaches? Us fans get caught in the crossfire.

As was "bountygate" this is a system of "fall in line ". You dont and you pay the price.

It is all the more reason to understand the NFL has an agenda. That agenda is money. Big money. And the thought process was "owners- look, you stand to make 100s of millions over the course of ownership- so what if you dont win a title, you still get wealthy and enjoy the perks only 31 other businessmen do" system. The NFL NEEDS certain teams to excel at certain times in order to maximize profits ( ie. tv rights, merchandise, viewership etc etc ). So they will, thru narratives, push toward certain teams thru media. To stoke those dollars.

ON the flip side, when you have a team like the Saints, who dont necessarily "buy in" to this system of haves/have nots ( but make great profits ), then you have punitive measures to take.

Bountygate was the first overtly punitive measure taken against a team in the HISTORY of the NFL ( by history i mean the level of punishment ). It was meant to be a " get back in line or we will ruin you " type. And for the most part, we did. Kept heads down, played football and paid the price with mediocre seasons after the punishment was levied.

This one is in the same vein, punitive in nature, for publicly decrying the "human " element that ALLOWS the NFL to push toward certain narratives under the disguise of "well its human error- mistakes are made - game is fast paced " etc etc.

We continue to fly in the face of the NFL agenda ever so slightly, yet the punitive side is much greater.

I truly hope in my lifetime that someone comes forth and blows it all to shirt with a tell all book.

 

[NUSaintsfan]

Even with that, it’s not the amount of penalties.
It’s when they are called.

A 5 yard illegal shift of 1st and 10 is not equal at all to a 3rd and 11, stop them to get off the field.....defensive holding off the ball for 5 yards and an automatic 1st.

And the amount of 1st downs by penalty, the difference in those numbers are STAGGERING.
I’d love to see the difference I those over Payton’s career....

^^^THIS^^^

It's when they are called and the inconsistencies that are more disconcerting.

 

[bobad]

It's probably hurting the team, but would you want Payton to react any differently? I know I wouldn't. If he just stood by passively, I'd be furious. There's been a lot of public discussion about NFL officiating lately, and I think the Saints have played a big part in that by standing up for themselves.

I admire Payton's spunk. Goodell and the officials don't, and they seem to be fighting back.

 

[Madmarsha]

A true scandal, in broad daylight. Why is this not being investigated by the FBI and reported in all of the papers???

 

[HoustonSaint68]

“Their opponents are called for the 2nd-fewest penalties in the league despite 7 of their 11 opponents in the top half of the league in penalties. 5 opponents had season-lows in penalties against vs. the Saints and 3 had season-highs in penalties for.”

 

[FGE413]

You're right, but what bothers me is the discrepancy in the games. 5 of our last 9 opponents have played their least penalized games of the season against us and the other 4 were below their season averages.

I certainly hope this is random and will correct itself during the stretch run and playoffs, but the above stat is the one that is the most troubling to me in terms of the refs being petty to spite because of the fuss that was made after the NFCCG last year.

Because it's all circumstantial...there are seven other teams more penalized than the Saints.

 

[St. PJ]

If the Saints manage to beat the officials to win Super Bowl 54, I'd love to see a shirt with Sean Payton giving Al Riveron and Roger the bird Johnny Cash style with the Lombardi or his sack in his other hand. Payton might need two hands for his sack though.

 

[BoNcHiE]

You're right, but what bothers me is the discrepancy in the games. 5 of our last 9 opponents have played their least penalized games of the season against us and the other 4 were below their season averages.

I certainly hope this is random and will correct itself during the stretch run and playoffs, but the above stat is the one that is the most troubling to me in terms of the refs being petty to spite because of the fuss that was made after the NFCCG last year.

If it were random, it'd have corrected itself already.

I.e. it ain't random.

 

[FGE413]

It is certainly possible the NFL's got an entire armada of petty, egomaniacal Joey Crawford types on their reffing crews.

If it were random, it'd have corrected itself already.

I.e. it ain't random.

 

[26ISTHEMAN]

I admire Payton's spunk. Goodell and the officials don't, and they seem to be fighting back.

Agree, and it's why I think the Saints will have to play nearly flawless football to win it all this year. We will also need plays like the muffed punt to go our way, where replay forces their hands after they initially try to screw us.

 

[NUSaintsfan]

You're right, but what bothers me is the discrepancy in the games. 5 of our last 9 opponents have played their least penalized games of the season against us and the other 4 were below their season averages.

I certainly hope this is random and will correct itself during the stretch run and playoffs, but the above stat is the one that is the most troubling to me in terms of the refs being petty to spite because of the fuss that was made after the NFCCG last year.

I'll take it from another angle - not saying I disagree - but offer up a different perspective. The other teams know that to beat the teams they cannot beat themselves so they have to play penalty free to give themselves any real shot. It's something all coaches preach throughout the season.

When you have the owners rolling over like Jerry did in the Dallas lost then there will be little change. It is "one of the things you have to live with." If that does not scream apathetic then I do not know what does, and if the owners do not perceive it as a problem because money continues to flow in through TV contracts and other avenues then do not expect a drastic change.

If anything, the attention will call into question the future referee teams and I'd expect the number of penalties to decrease against the Saints.

With that said, the Saints need to stop with the dumb "hands to the face" penalties and plays like Cam Jordan's from Sunday when the QB was already being sacked and the whistle was being blown right in his ear.

 

[crosswatt]

A single curve doesn't mean much of anything without comparing it to the NFL average.

He did the Patriots too for I assume a comparison...

 

[FGE413]

All solid points.

The other penalty that frustrated me Sunday was Marcus Williams (who has had a strong season otherwise) committing PI in the endzone because he didn't turn around to look for the ball. I understand that in the middle of the field DBs don't look back for the ball because that can result in the WR going deep and burning them for a TD. But Marcus knew he was in the back of the endzone...There was no danger of being torched deep. You can turn your head there!

I'll take it from another angle - not saying I disagree - but offer up a different perspective. The other teams know that to beat the teams they cannot beat themselves so they have to play penalty free to give themselves any real shot. It's something all coaches preach throughout the season.

When you have the owners rolling over like Jerry did in the Dallas lost then there will be little change. It is "one of the things you have to live with." If that does not scream apathetic then I do not know what does, and if the owners do not perceive it as a problem because money continues to flow in through TV contracts and other avenues then do not expect a drastic change.

If anything, the attention will call into question the future referee teams and I'd expect the number of penalties to decrease against the Saints.

With that said, the Saints need to stop with the dumb "hands to the face" penalties and plays like Cam Jordan's from Sunday when the QB was already being sacked and the whistle was being blown right in his ear.

 

[J.T.]

You're right, but what bothers me is the discrepancy in the games. 5 of our last 9 opponents have played their least penalized games of the season against us and the other 4 were below their season averages.

I certainly hope this is random and will correct itself during the stretch run and playoffs, but the above stat is the one that is the most troubling to me in terms of the refs being petty to spite because of the fuss that was made after the NFCCG last year.

It is not "random" it is rigged. The NFL and their "officials" or "goon squad" have decided to make an example out of the Saints for going "against the shield" after complaining about the intentionally blown call from the NFCCG. This will not end until the Saints are eliminated from the playoffs and might continue for several years.

 

[efil4stnias]

It is certainly possible the NFL's got an entire armada of petty, egomaniacal Joey Crawford types on their reffing crews.

small possibility.

Refs arent going to go "rogue" on the NFL agenda. That would not be beneficial to the NFL for the controversy would garner more "eyes". They dont want that.

I would expect this trend to regress a bit back to the mean so the current "chatter" dies down ahead of the playoffs.

Funny, recent years you have heard that officiating tends to be more "lenient" during playoffs...wonder why?