Neither. This is driven by the NFL's need to make certain Asshole Face doesn't show up the commish. They would like nothing better than to see Carolina push the Saints to WC status.
Marketing... it's all about marketability and who (which team) is testing the best with national audiences. This then drives TV ratings, advertising dollars, and product/service sales for the NFL's advertisers. It's about the top line. The rest is just for show for the public.
Excellent way to put it
I think the NFL-game-of-manipulation changed significantly at SB36, and started to become much more apparent, when they so badly wanted the much lesser Patriots to win after a 911-altered season. It's pretty obvious that the shenanigans were far more extensive than simply the obvious one-sided refereeing, otherwise, Belicheat would have been shown the Pete Rose Exit Door. Hence, I think they learned they could get away with a lot more without losing audiences, and so now we're seeing the result of this new found flexibility. I think fans at ROD are at the tip-of-the-spear, so we'll be the first to notice and the first to turn-off our TV's. But when the top 20% finally see the gaming-of-the-Game, then the NFL will re-adjust and the pendulum will start to swing back in order to recapture audiences.It's just friggin sad. Maybe I've been too too gullible all my life and the NFL has always been this way but I just have begun to see it the past handful of years. It seems to me ever since the introduction of instant replay the refs have taken the opportunity to abuse the other calls that are not subject to scrutiny under it. Calls like holding, pass interference, ruffing the passer, clipping, targeting, personal fouls are all used to change outcomes. It's enough to make life-long, die-hard fans to go Any Given Sunday on their asses!!!!
