Five reasons why the NFL won’t make meaningful improvements to officiating
However, the NFL won’t comply unless Congress establishes an organization to oversee professional sports, for example. And eventually, that might occur. Nothing will change until that point. Following years of contemplation, discussion, and writing about this matter, as well as gathering opinions from numerous executives and coaches, these are the five reasons it won’t occur.
1. Money.
The NFL costs little. To be more precise, the NFL won’t invest money unless it believes there could be a profit. The NFL doesn’t think it will be beneficial to invest the funds required for changes like hiring full-time officials or embracing digital technology completely. The real cost increase is not offset by the apparent increase in accuracy.
I could talk about this forever. Why take the action? Not many will dispute. The NFL enjoys turning a profit. It dislikes having to spend money. It’s not surprising; that’s how all businesses operate. However, keep that in mind when the NFL brags about the fairness of the game or anything else. Ultimately, all decisions intended to improve the integrity of the situation will be weighed against the financial implications.
2. Effort.
Here’s a perspective that was recently brought to light by a senior source affiliated with an NFL team. In addition to the financial resources that would be needed, it would take time and work to make significant improvements. Meetings, conversations, and discussions would be required. Individuals would have to find time to work even harder on top of their already heavy workloads. For what purpose? What are the benefits? What is the advantage?
Humans don’t try to make things too complicated in their lives. Leading an initiative to modernize officiating would complicate the lives of those in the league office, especially when pitching the idea to people who don’t want to add more complexity to their own.
3. Incompetence.
My parents used to make me mow the lawn when I was a child. According to my official statement, I had terrible allergies. I simply didn’t want to do it, and that was my unofficial reality. I therefore made such a huge mistake that they never asked me to do it again.
Go back to 2019. Replay review for pass interference calls and non-calls was instituted by the NFL. And they botched it so badly that they can now use that experience as their first line of defense against any attempt to implement significant changes. The words “unintended consequences” are in vogue. In actuality, those who are paid well to oversee the sport ought to be qualified to foresee and account for every eventuality. If they are, they don’t want to. If they aren’t, they won’t have to.
4. “Embrace debate.”
The NFL detests the additional scrutiny that results from making mistakes in officiating on one level. But the NFL is a huge fan of it.
In an interview with PFT Live a few years ago, Rams coach Jeff Fisher, who was also the co-chair of the Competition Committee at the time, stated that the media always had something to talk about when it came to the officiating scandals. He said it in a lighthearted manner. There was a kernel of truth rattling around in it, like in every joke.
The media’s focus shifts to the scrutiny of officiating until the next batch of shiny, bright objects rolls off the conveyor belt. After then, everyone moves on to the next game(s) and the most recent controversy is forgotten.
It prevents any of the different officiating errors that occur throughout the regular season from becoming seriously problematic. And for that reason, most changes won’t occur until after a significant postseason controversy, such as the one that erupted around the Rams vs. Saints 2018 NFC Championship.
5. The NFL doesn’t need to do anything.
The best explanation for why nothing will happen is this. There’s no need to adapt. Fans continue to pour into games. Millions continue to watch. Funds continue to flow. When something doesn’t need to be changed, why change it? When something is working well, why fix it?
Indeed, officiating is flawed in a lot of ways. If it’s not bankrupting the NFL, then how flawed is it? The team believes that the bad calls eventually balance out. It is true that for every poor decision made by one team, a good one is made by the other. Due to all of these factors, the NFL will not willingly change officiating. Rather, things will stay as they are until a big scandal occurs and, after the dust settles, some political body makes the NFL rethink every aspect of officiating games to make the most accurate calls possible.
Nothing will happen until then.