The NFL has climbed to extraordinary new heights as America’s most-watched sporting product – but it is now facing a problem it can no longer ignore.
Over the past few years, officials have seemed to display an increased sense of main character energy. On Sunday, that all came to a head in two ugly incidents, one unprecedented NFL response and an array of worrying stats.
The first shocking incident came when a play was whistled dead in the Minnesota Vikings’ win over the Miami Dolphins. Dolphins running back Ollie Gordon did not appear to hear the whistle, and pushed Eric Wilson into referee Adrian Hill.
Hill took an innocuous tumble as Wilson tried to break his fall. The response? Hill climbing to his feet, getting in Wilson’s face and barking at the Vikings linebacker like he was a naughty schoolboy.
And while Wilson later laughed off the incident, it was merely reflective of how seriously the Zebras now seem to take themselves. They can’t be touched – literally – and seemingly have no issue talking down to the real stars of the show.
That was evident again when Trey McBride appealed for a pass interference call in the fourth quarter of the Arizona Cardinals’ loss to the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium.
Adrian Hill confronted Eric Wilson after the Vikings linebacker accidentally knocked him over
NFL line judge Jeff Seeman (right) is seen cursing at Cardinals tight end Trey McBride
‘F*** you’, linesman Jeff Seeman was seen repeatedly barking at McBride, one of the best tight ends in the game, in footage caught by sideline cameras. McBride simply laughed in disbelief as he realized it had been broadcast around the world, peeling back the curtain on the reality of those controlling America’s biggest sporting events.
Seeman has been suspended for two games and Hill for one, both for ‘unprofessional conduct toward a player.’ It is the first time since 1968 that multiple officials have been suspended in the same season.
It is a start, and a sign the league is now taking this issue seriously. But it is just the tip of the iceberg after the situation it has allowed to develop.
Referees have continued to be protected to such an extent that Rams coach Sean McVay landed himself in hot water for revealing the NFL admitted officials got a key pass interference call wrong in their loss to the Denver Broncos.
Despite the private admission, the league reminded all teams in a memo that ‘all such conversations are confidential’, and threatened discipline on any of those discussing them publicly.
And so, with its officials increasingly untouchable and unaccountable both on the field and in public, there seems to have been a steadily increasing trend of them making themselves the story.
While the conduct of two officials towards the real stars – those playing the game – was shocking, what was more worrying was the combined 255 penalties called in Sunday’s 14 games.
It averaged out at more than 18 penalties per game, the most of any week in over a decade, and left viewers branding the product close to ‘unwatchable’.
NFL officials are in the spotlight after a flag-filled weekend of games in Week 4 of the season
There has been a growing frustration with how games are being officiated in recent years
The Seattle Seahawks’ win over the Los Angeles Chargers saw Scott Novak’s crew take charge of a game with 30 accepted penalties for 280 yards.
Offensive units are being flagged at the highest rate since 2000 in the first four weeks of the season. Officials have chalked off 17 TDs because of penalties.
Increasingly, fans are finding themselves watching the ‘National Flag League’, with games stunted by video replays rather than clips of star players making gravity-defying plays.
Of course, the players must take some blame, but the NFL dictates how the game is officiated. And perhaps its officials need a reminder that nobody is there to watch them throw flags – they are there to watch them play.
An unnamed NFC executive told OutKick: ‘Some of these guys seem to believe the game is better off in their hands than in the hands of the players and coaches. It’s ego.’
We can only hope that Monday’s rare punishments handed out to Seeman and Hill serve as a warning to the rest of the league’s officials.
The disrespect towards players needs to stop. The endless stream of flags needs to stop. And the main character syndrome from those who seem to love turning on their stadium mics to get their moment in the spotlight needs to stop.
If the NFL does not get a grip of the problem, then fans are going to grow increasingly tired.
And just as quickly as fans have turned on to the NFL with viewing figures booming in recent years, they can turn off. If the league isn’t careful with its officiating, then millions might do just that.
