2. Officiating was horrendous
What could make NFL fans long for the days of replacement referees? Week 2 officiating was so horrendous that the league should consider bringing in replacement refs. At least then fans can say to themselves, “Officiating sucks because these aren’t the real guys.” Instead, the NFL professional referees bungled call after call after call after call… ad infinitum.
if @nflcommish wants to hold players accountable for shoelaces gloves etc he should hold referees more accountable for blown calls
— Vic Joseph (@VicJosephWWE) September 18, 2016
During the Bengals’ game against the Steelers, the referees denied the Bengals a clear touchdown, and then made several erroneous pass interference calls against the Steelers. Later, Antonio Brown “lost his footing,” according to announcers. “Lost his footing” was code language for “knocked down on purpose by the defender.” While he was sitting on the ground he was unable to catch what would have been a touchdown pass. The Bengals had a slew of other equally valid complaints about bad calls made against them throughout the game.
Fans of other teams had similar frustrations. Check out this bizarre taunting call on the Cleveland Browns from their game against the Baltimore Ravens.
This is what a game changing taunting penalty looks like. We just can't have this a game of tough mans game. #wow pic.twitter.com/g33GAEsStD
— Jay Crawford (@JaycrawfordCLE) September 18, 2016
The Detroit Lions’ game against the Tennessee Titans was also a flag-fest.
Lions not doing themselves any favours, but the officiating in this game has been among the worst in recent memory.
— David Alter (@dalter) September 18, 2016
Cam Newton is the Eric Lindros of Football Big physical dudes that get zero protection from Refs Concussions waiting to happen
— JOHN BOLARIS (@JohnBolaris) September 14, 2016
The NFL admitted that officials botched a few calls in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ game against the Green Bay Packers in Week 1. After their loss, Jaguars representatives complained about missed calls including a defensive holding call and four pass interference calls.
Also in Week 1, Cam Newton suffered several helmet-to-helmet hits which went unpunished by referees. With the league’s alleged emphasis on player safety and concussion prevention, those incidents went beyond sloppy officiating.
It’s not a total surprise that officiating was bad, but it is disappointing that it seems to get worse and worse each season.