The NFL: The Continuing Story of a Quack (Commissioner) Who's Gone To The Dogs

Another week, more NFL bullshit.

Biggest one this week was one the NFL admitted was a mistake.

Sunday night, nearing the end of the game, 2 minutes to go, Washington has the ball, driving on the Giants to try to tie the game, trailing 24-17.

Here's the controversy:


You see, clearly, that the ball is set short of the first down (there are some reports that, in fact, the play actually gained a couple of feet more than this, and it was easily a first down).

The linesman on the near side of the field at :03 - :04 believes so too and motions for the chains to be moved.

The referee is signalling third down.

Now, in any realistic event, the ball cannot be snapped, in any capacity, with this kind of confusion.  The league said, correctly, the game had to be stopped to clear the confusion.

As a result, and as the ESPN announcer correctly notes, Mike Shanahan calls a first-down pass play on what turns out to be third down.

It is broken up, the Redskins fail to make 4th down and a foot, and the Giants win 24-17.

So the league admits their error, but you have no recourse to correct it (neener neener neener).

So what does this mean?

Just like almost every other example of admitted bad calls on the part of the league, this was no accident.

The call was NOT a mistake -- in that it ensured the outcome the league openly wanted.

Don't believe me?  Here are some examples:

• The infamous debacle at Candlestick in the playoffs between the Giants and the 49ers.  Botched field-goal snap turns into a mess at the end, with an receiver (who, in fact, was lined up on the end of the field goal unit, and, hence, even with the number, ELIGIBLE) mugged in the attempt to recover the situation.  Result?  49ers win, 49er Empire happy, league happy with continued fellating of the 49er dynasty.  Error admitted, but nothing can be done.
• The Fail Mary.  Perhaps, knowing what we know now, this was the establishment of the dirty Seahags being pushed to high Heaven, even with a questionable coach and even more questionable practices behind the scenes (drugs, drugs, drugs...), etc. and so on and the Cult of the 12th Man and so forth...  But again, league admits error, but the result stands -- the result (for whatever reason -- be it to get the replacement refs out of there alive or the beginning of the Seahag Era/end of the Packer Era, etc.)
• Two errors admitted in a mid-November week last year -- one giving Denver a touchdown it shouldn't have gotten versus Carolina (and probably costing the then-Carolina special-teams coach his job), and a problem in the drawn game between San Francisco and St. Louis.
• The league, this week, admitted THREE officiating errors against the Tennessee Titans.  Their opponents?  The Indianapolis Colts.
• Super Bowl XL, and one of the worst-officiated games in history.  But the balance of the calls aided the Steelers in having hometown boy Jerome Bettis ride off into retirement with a ring.

And there are numerous others.

But, to a one, there's one thing in common.

When the NFL admits a mistake, it's not a mistake.  The error ensured the exact result the NFL wanted.

Keep this in mind.