Refs Instructed to Call More Holding Calls?

[Ants]

NFL powers that be figure its not in their best interest to showcase the leading candidate for league MVP getting horse collard and held almost every play. Time to nip that in the bud before playoff time.

And its not just AD. OL holding (due to it not being called) is rampant in the NFL.

Selassie makes a good point. What were they instructed before the season started?

Sounds to me like they had an agenda and instructions to officials to get more scoring.

^^^ This.

 

[Noregar]

I think the refs slacking on calling holding penalties has led to more explosive plays and thus more scoring across the league in general this year. Maybe it has become too obvious and too blatant so for PR reasons the league has had to reinforce it again.

I remember Pete Carrol was complaining about or OL holding so much earlier in the year when his OL was doing much worse to our DL (hypocrite).

There could be blowback on the Rams OL if they actually do start enforcing it more evenly (still skeptical if they actually mean it) but with Donald, Suh, & Brokers, the Rams DL will greatly benefit and it will more than offset any negative impacts to our Rams offense.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

NFL powers that be figure its not in their best interest to showcase the leading candidate for league MVP getting horse collard and held almost every play. Time to nip that in the bud before playoff time.

And its not just AD. OL holding (due to it not being called) is rampant in the NFL.

Selassie makes a good point. What were they instructed before the season started?

Sounds to me like they had an agenda and instructions to officials to get more scoring.

Yet many here claim the NFL would never get away with tampering with outcomes of games. Somebody would come forward. Someone will spill the beans. But they suddenly have the potential MVP and new record setting sack leader, who is on the current Super Bowl favorite and they suddenly decide to make it easier for him to win MVP, and break a long standing record, from an interior line position. Sure sounds like they are fixing the outcome of the MVP race. A monster finish by Donald would likely seal it.

Whatever for? Maybe to grab their new market by the balls? I’ll be anxiously awaiting the end result.

 

[Prime Time]

"I'd need to see it to believe it." - Herr Starr


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyKmR_Yhznw

 

[LesBaker]

Just heard Mike Pierera (sp) on TNF. He stated the refs are instructed to call more holding calls as of this week.

He's just another talking head, so I'm not buying this until I see it happen.

Shaq was very hard to officiate and AD seems to be the same way.

Shaq created problems for the refs for sure. Same with LeBron. When you have guys that much stronger and faster than the players guarding them it's tough.

I've never seen anyone else get hammered more than Shaq, LeBron is second but there is a big gap.

Unless they call us for holding Mack more often than they call them for holding Donald.

Whitworth does the exact same thing on almost every pass play, everyone else on the OL of every team does.

Watch the OL instead of Goff and the ball or Gurley and you will see what I mean.

I know a lot of people like to throw out the conspiracy card but every team holds and the refs don't always see it. Period. Just like they miss PI sometimes.

 

[1maGoh]

Whitworth does the exact same thing on almost every pass play, everyone else on the OL of every team does.

Watch the OL instead of Goff and the ball or Gurley and you will see what I mean.

I know a lot of people like to throw out the conspiracy card but every team holds and the refs don't always see it. Period. Just like they miss PI sometimes.

I didn't mean it as a conspiracy. I simply meant that we're facing a top pass rusher and this might not work out in our favor.

 

[jetplt67]

So as some know I officiate high school and semi pro ball. There are rules and then there is philosophy. We all know the rules, however we apply philosophy to make these calls. First and foremost; all fowls must be big.

As far as holding goes: if a player is double-teamed (like Donald is on most every play) we don't call a holding fowl unless it is just ridiculous. The philosophy is that if the other team wants to use 2 players on him, that's their disadvantage and so it's allowed (in general).

Most of the time, when I see Donald held and it's not called, he was double-teamed. So I assume it's NFL philosophy also.

That's my 2 cents anyway.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Yeah, agree with everyone that this is stupid for them to be changing their minds constantly about how rules should be handled. NFL has a real issue. This would obviously benefit AD a lot. But while the constant non-holding calls are annoying the biggest gripe I always have is how they seemingly call nothing a whole game and then suddenly WHAM, holding call on a key drive in the 4th quarter the completely effects a team negatively. Hate refs that do that. Don't be nitpicking assholes the whole game and then throw a game changing flag when it matters most for something both teams have been doing for 50 minutes already. Frustrating.

But if this is true, I look forward to AD breaking the sack record.

It’s a built in system rig. By not calling blatant holding in most every game, Olineman will hold on every play. That way holding will be there to be called whenever a penalty is necessary to fix a game.

 

[socalrams90]

Yeah, agree with everyone that this is stupid for them to be changing their minds constantly about how rules should be handled. NFL has a real issue. This would obviously benefit AD a lot. But while the constant non-holding calls are annoying the biggest gripe I always have is how they seemingly call nothing a whole game and then suddenly WHAM, holding call on a key drive in the 4th quarter the completely effects a team negatively. Hate refs that do that. Don't be nitpicking assholes the whole game and then throw a game changing flag when it matters most for something both teams have been doing for 50 minutes already. Frustrating.

But if this is true, I look forward to AD breaking the sack record.

Yeah it was blatant on one of the recent games where we were up by 2 possessions to end the game and the refs started calling everything against us. I think it was Denver.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

I think the refs slacking on calling holding penalties has led to more explosive plays and thus more scoring across the league in general this year. Maybe it has become too obvious and too blatant so for PR reasons the league has had to reinforce it again.

I remember Pete Carrol was complaining about or OL holding so much earlier in the year when his OL was doing much worse to our DL (hypocrite).

There could be blowback on the Rams OL if they actually do start enforcing it more evenly (still skeptical if they actually mean it) but with Donald, Suh, & Brokers, the Rams DL will greatly benefit and it will more than offset any negative impacts to our Rams offense.

And hopefully this defense will start being as tough as they were originally intended to be. D-line running wild, making pass plays impossible to execute.

 

[Mojo Ram]

Shaq was very hard to officiate and AD seems to be the same way. Lets see what happens and if the refs can man up and throw more flags even though the viewers hate it.

Good point with the Shaq analogy. In his prime dude was fouled every time he made a move to the basket inside by usually multiple defenders, but the refs didn't or wouldn't (couldn't) blow the whistle EVERY time or the entire game would be spent watching him miss free throws...and by choosing NOT to blow a whistle they are by definition influencing the game with an agenda.

Holding is the single best tool that allows referees to control momentum in football when they decide to do so. It's always been that way, but it's never been so obvious as it is today.

 

[Mojo Ram]

Yet many here claim the NFL would never get away with tampering with outcomes of games.

They say this because they don't understand the meaning of "judgement call" and how that relates to calling a game "straight up." There is no provable conspiracy and therefor no culpability when a penalty like holding can be called on every play but it isn't. There is no paper trail leading to the NFL.

 

[Mojo Ram]

If i had the choice to sit in on either a White House chief of staff meeting or a professional referees pre-game meeting i'm choosing the refs. It'd be far more eye opening i'm sure.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

They say this because they don't understand the meaning of "judgement call" and how that relates to calling a game "straight up." There is no provable conspiracy and therefor no culpability when a penalty like holding can be called on every play but it isn't. There is no paper trail leading to the NFL.

Rich NFL owners didn’t get that way by being stupid. They are master strategists.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Or, maybe they realize that they went to far and don’t like the idea of Mahomes shattering the QB record book and making the greats look pedestrian.

 

[1maGoh]

So as some know I officiate high school and semi pro ball. There are rules and then there is philosophy. We all know the rules, however we apply philosophy to make these calls. First and foremost; all fowls must be big.

As far as holding goes: if a player is double-teamed (like Donald is on most every play) we don't call a holding fowl unless it is just ridiculous. The philosophy is that if the other team wants to use 2 players on him, that's their disadvantage and so it's allowed (in general).

Most of the time, when I see Donald held and it's not called, he was double-teamed. So I assume it's NFL philosophy also.

That's my 2 cents anyway.

So referees know the rulebook and just don't care. Great.

One would think that given even a little bit of forethought, the ridiculously biased and meaningless philosophy would go the other way. If you choose to double team a player and still can't manage to block him without holding, you deserve the foul even more.

Had anyone considered writing down these philosophies so that they can be catalogedcat field called scouting to them? Oh wait, then they would be rules and they would just get ignored for another personal philosophy. Never mind.

 

[Merlin]

I'll believe it when I see it. Refs have always had a tolerance for holding, it's necessary otherwise you'll be calling it every other play, but it used to be hands inside on the numbers where you could hold and grip in there as long as you don't lose position and end up pulling jersey. Hands outside have been allowed this season with a low call rate, and with Donald we have seen egregious holds and tackles with no call.

Rams basically were hit the hardest by that trend IMO. Of course our OL holds like the rest of them, but not as much as other teams hold against our DL. I have given up on the complaining about it, particularly the way Donald is held so blatantly, but I would hope the Rams have been sending film to the league office weekly to hammer home how ridiculous it is.

If the refs don't enforce it, teams will adjust from their strategy and gameplanning on down. So yeah I'm hopeful but not going to buy in that it will happen until I see it.

 

[Prime Time]

First and foremost; all fowls must be big.

:rimshot:

 

[dieterbrock]

I only see this helping us.

This man disagrees

 

[Rambitious1]

Just heard Mike Pierera (sp) on TNF. He stated the refs are instructed to call more holding calls as of this week. Techniques linemen are using that are illegal are now going to be called.
If true, this will be huge for AD.

*Instructed
Thread title mispelled

It ‘could’ also be a double edged sword.
Meaning our offense could also be called more with that as well.
I don’t think our O holds any more than any other, but still.....could possibly cut both ways.
We’ll see.