Is the NFL Rigged

I have been on the fence about this for the past few years because there are good points as to why the league would be rigged and there are good points as to why the league would not be rigged.

There is a lot of money involved in the sport so swinging games a certain way is definitely possible, but I feel like someone would snitch and leak information about the league being rigged so it seems too high-risk high reward. 

My view on it also depends on whether I have a bet on a game. If the refs make a call against the team I bet the league is immediately rigged, but if it is the other way around then the league is as honest as it can be. 

However, watching Week 7 there were a lot of questionable calls in several games that move the needle slightly more towards the NFL being rigged. 

Browns vs. Colts

The first blown calls came during the 1 o’clock slate between the Browns and the Colts, which was probably the best game of the week. The Colts were winning 38-33 with 45 seconds left and the Browns had the ball at the Colts 13-yard line. Browns quarterback P.J. Walker would drop back and fumble the ball, recovered by the Colts and handing them their fourth win of the season. However, the Colts got called for an illegal contact penalty to make it first down for the Browns. 

The illegal contact was nowhere to be found in my opinion. It was a great double move by Amari Cooper as it looked like he had his defender beat, but to help him gain more separation he pushed the cornerback Darrell Baker down. Baker tried to catch himself and barely “grabbed” Cooper to keep himself up. I don’t understand how this is a flag on Baker it should have been offensive pass interference on Cooper. 

The Browns got a second chance thanks to the refs and had first and goal at the eight-yard line after the penalty. Baker would be targeted again on the next play, this time covering Donovan Peoples-Jones. The normal hand-checking by receivers and cornerbacks happened and the ball was way overthrown, but once again a flag was thrown. Immediately Baker was upset with the call and Colts coach, Shane Steichen, signaled to the refs that the ball was uncatchable. The refs obviously disagreed and threw a flag for pass interference which put the ball at the one-yard line. 

If anything the flag would have been on Peoples-Jones as he was grabbing Baker, but if it was my call I would have not thrown a flag on either of them and just let the players play. The Browns would go on to punch the ball in and win the game 39-38. 

It’s funny because the NFL came out and admitted they got the calls wrong, but they don’t care because the game is over, and there’s nothing they can change about the outcome. 

Steelers vs. Rams

The Steelers were up 24-17 against the Rams and needed one more first down to ice the game. On a 4th and 1 at the Rams’ 39-yard line, Kenny Pickett had a QB sneak attempt that looked well short of the line to gain when it happened live and looked well short when looking at all the replays. Coach Sean McVay would have been able to challenge the spot since it was just outside two minutes left in the game, but he did not have a timeout. The refs could not go to a booth review since it wasn’t under two minutes remaining.

I feel like that is a stupid rule. That kind of play, a 4th and 1 to seal the game, needs to be reviewed. The Rams should have had the ball with great field position and 2:20 left in the game, but instead, the Steelers kneeled out the clock. I just don’t understand why the ref comes in and stands exactly where the ball was down and then somehow it is a whole half yard closer and magically is a first down by the slightest margin. 

Dolphins vs. Eagles

The Eagles and Dolphins game was a little bit different as it was the entire game was suspicious rather than one or two plays at the end of the game. 

The Eagles had no penalties against them the entire game compared to the Dolphins 10 for 70 yards. Now I will play both sides of the argument and say that the Eagles are a very disciplined team and only average around 4 penalties per game this season, but having zero in a game is crazy. It is one thing if they actually played clean the entire game, but there were some obvious missed calls, a few being holding and one being a face mask penalty. If you are gonna let the boys play then it’s gotta be even across the board.

It is hard to say that this helped the Eagles win the game because they won by 14 points, but the whole game could have been different if one of these penalties was called. 

Potential Changes

So what I am getting from all of this is that the league needs to change some things. Maybe go back to allowing coaches to challenge pass interferences. I know it didn’t work in the past because they would normally just stick with the call, but let’s learn from our mistakes and tweak some things. The NFL also should have the ability to booth review any fourth downs no matter how much time is left. If you can fine players for stupid things like the color of their shoes or for a celebration then refs should be held accountable for their mistakes because they are actually game-changing and potentially season-changing. 

Let me know in the comments which game you think was the worst officiating game between these three. 

My ranking would be:

• Browns vs. Colts
• Steelers vs. Rams
• Dolphins vs. Eagles