This is slowly becoming the most "BS", misused and arbitrary penalty in the referee's toolkit. Time for a rethinking of this one.
The new "Taunting Penalty"
- Thread starter NYJDraftKing
- Start date
Any rule that is open to interpretation is always going to help the premiere franchises and hurt the franchises like the Jets.
The media doesn't like to admit it, and the league will never admit it either, but some teams in this league are treated like the Harlem Globetrotters, while others are treated like the Washington Generals, and nowhere is that more apparent than in the way interpretive rules are officiated.
That said, if you coach a team like the Jets, you have to drill this into your players and tell them don't celebrate on the field, at all. If you don't celebrate on the field, at all, you won't give the officials a chance to screw us.
I know its unfair, but hey, life isn't always fair, you just have to adapt and don't give them a chance to screw you.
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But referee's should apply "a common sense factor" when a flag is thrown here ..... see Sheldon Richardson getting hit with a taunting after Buffalo had scored, he was reacting to Richie Incognito ... the nastiest player in NFL .... this one IMHO needs an explaination. Today's call on Pryor in Cleveland's final drive today....is another!!!
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Did anyone else notice this after Decker got the taunting penalty last week? When he would get a first down, he would intentionally run away from anyone before making his first down gesture. Every time he did is there was a referee in the frame and they would laugh and smile at each other like it was an inside joke. Kind of annoyed me at the time.
yea. That was annoying bc it proved how ridiculous the call was.
J
JohnnyBaseball1
Guest
I'm torn because I just want them to be able to play, and I hate the idea that this type of penalty is so subjective, and so could cause the appearance of unfairness when it is called. But at the same time, all the over-the-top celebrating (much of which occurs after extremely mundane events like first downs or tackles) IS unsportsmanlike. Then again, they're actual athletes, maybe the definition of sportsmanship should be expanded or modified to, ya know, actually reflect what actual sportsmen do...
Right. The problem is "unsportsmanlike conduct" is a misnomer of a rule name.
You should either remove the subjectivity (no celebrating at all, just play the game, period), or don't have a taunting rule at all, except outlawing obscene gestures. I'm old school so I would be perfectly fine with the former. I get excited about FOOTBALL, the actual game, the actual plays that these world class athletes make on the field, thats all I need to stay interested, thats all I need to love this game, I don't need any of the peripheral bullsh*t to keep my attention, so if they want to remove the histrionics from the game entirely, okay by me.
But IMO if you are not going to do that, so the rule is black and white and applies equally across the board, then don't have any rules for taunting at all, because I KNOW that once you add subjectivity into the equation, teams like the Jets will get the shaft while teams like the Patriots will benefit from it over the long haul. For example, you will never see a 50 Yard Pass called back on the Patriots for taunting the way that Decker play called back in the opener, nor will you ever see a late comeback drive by the Patriots essentially killed by a taunting call the way that Browns drive was killed on that Pryor call.
That kind of stuff only happens to the dregs of the league when the rules are subjective, the Washington Generals who are there to play the foil for the Harlem Globetrotters of the league, like the Patriots.
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JohnnyBaseball1
Guest
I just find it dubious because I see athletes talking trash and taunting all the time. It seems to come with the territory. It is rude, but I'm not sure rudeness on its own really warrants a penalty. And the ideal "sportsman" seems to be quite rare. I dunno. You know this rule is gonna bite teams on the ass, and it turns some great players into potential liabilities and turns players' enthusiasm into a potential liability. And lets be honest, even if you don't like the celebrating and the trash talking, it creates the potential for conflict and it creates the potential for unexpected events during the game, and that's always interesting. Removing it just makes the game more boring, but I guess it makes the players better role models, and clearly the league is concerned about that right now.
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JohnnyBaseball1
Guest
I totally agree. And it isn't a knock on the refs to say that giving them subjective calls they have to make like this puts pressure on them, and they have a lot to deal with already. It will be extremely difficult for even a single ref to consistently apply the rule, and different refs will have different standards, making the rule itself enforced unequally across the league. That makes it hard for the players to adapt. The best solution is to just stop with all the celebrating, but that is easier said than done, I guess, because players seem to have trouble with that idea.
M
Mainejet
Guest
The players should be able to have fun because it raises the level of excitement for the players, and in turn, the fans. There was absolutely nothing wrong with Eric Decker's gestures after a big catch. This officiating is nonsense voted in by a bunch of dumb owners.
Guessing at where the "unsportsmanlike" term came from, I suppose someone might have initially suggested "unsporting," which was quickly rejected for sounding too British. "Unbecoming," as is used in the military for bad behavior by officers, was probably rejected as sounding too wimpy. I agree, players should be allowed to celebrate. But if you dance in some guy's face who you just beat, obviously taunting is what is being done. I guess there will always be subjectivity in this kind of rule.
Thats why I flat-out oppose this rule.
I have been watching this league long enough to know that ANY RULE that requires subjectivity is an invitation to publicly sodomize my team on game day. I don't think that, I KNOW IT, therefore I would be a fool to lend my approval to this rule.
And I am not interested in theoretical discussions about how the rule should be applied equally across the board. That conversation does not interest me in the least. We all agree on how it SHOULD BE, but I'm only interested in how IT IS.
The Pryor penalty in the Cleveland game was a blown call. Plain and simple. The refs screwed that one up, and it had an effect on the game.
But I'm on the side of the "old school" when it comes to celebrating and taunting. It's become a showman highlight reel extravaganza with this generation of athletes. Everyone wants attention on Instagram, ESPN, and all other big media. It's to the point of absolute narcissism.
I went outside with my 9 year old son to throw the football around at halftime of the early games. After he made a nice catch on a ball I threw, guess what he did?
Spin the ball down on the ground, and do an ODB dance. I wonder where he learned that?
But I'm on the side of the "old school" when it comes to celebrating and taunting. It's become a showman highlight reel extravaganza with this generation of athletes. Everyone wants attention on Instagram, ESPN, and all other big media. It's to the point of absolute narcissism.
I went outside with my 9 year old son to throw the football around at halftime of the early games. After he made a nice catch on a ball I threw, guess what he did?
Spin the ball down on the ground, and do an ODB dance. I wonder where he learned that?
OBJ dance is just crude
Cruz salsa annoying
Neither ever get a flag
But Decker got one.
And that one on Pryor was just ridiculous .
I hate to have to oppose you on this hammer, and I'm not sure the current rule is good. But I think you have to let guys celebrate success. But the celebration has to be within reason. Can't see how you can do that w/o allowing refs to use judgment. And yes, the Jets will probably get screwed a lot by such judgments,
What team does the first two assclowns play for?
Now what teams do Decker and Pryor play for?
I rest my case.