Professional and amateur sporting contests are the source of much joy and anguish among the world’s population.  The outcome of matches and games everywhere are subject to common flaws caused by human judgement.  ZebraWatch.com has been established to help shed light on the many issues which arise from the current system of judging contests.

There are solutions for every problem.  When written and interpreted correctly, rules can be black and white with no gray areas.  It is our goal to give greater attention to the overall problem with bad calls, to provide constructive criticism and possible solutions to help eliminate discrepancies and improve the overall enjoyment of the games by fans everywhere.

The primary focus is on the National Football League. However, all sports are open to criticism by our Zebra Watchers.

As time is running down in game 3 of the Red Wings/Ducks Western Conference semifinal for the Stanley Cup, the Red Wings score a goal to tie the game and force overtime!

Unfortunately, referee Brad Watson, blows an early whistle when he loses sight of the puck… The goal is waived off and the Ducks are handed a tainted victory…

View The Video Evidence »

On January 18th, 2008, fate tipped in balance to the wrong team three times as judgements were made by referee Walt Anderson’s crew:

In the 2nd quarter, with 9:06 remaining and the Philadelphia Eagles driving, it came to a 3rd down. Cornerback Ralph Brown of the Arizona Cardinals grabbed the jersey of receiver Jason Avant of the Eagles while the ball was in the air. The tug pulled Avant’s shoulder back and prevented him from making a reception. No penalty flag was thrown; the 4th down resulted in a field goal for the Eagles.

With 3:06 remaining in the 2nd quarter, Arizona kicked off. The ball hits a few centimeters inbounds and bounces back into the field of play where an Arizona player recovers the ball. Unfortunately, the refs rule that the ball goes out of bounds after touching a player from Philadelphia. The rules of the NFL do not allow for such a critical play to be reviewed.

On the final meaningful play of the 2008 season for the Philadelphia Eagles, it is 4th and 10 on the Philadelpha 33 yard line with 1:57 remaining in the game. Kevin Curtis of the Eagles tries to run a square out pattern, but Rod Hood of the Cardinals can not stay with him. As Curtis makes his cut, Hood falls and reaches out and takes Curtis down with him. Curtis still had a shot at making the reception, but the pass interference was enough to prevent the catch from occurring. The referees kept their flags in their pocket. The Cardinals won the game by 7 points and celebrated their first Super Bowl berth.

2008 NFC Championship Game - Play-by-Play - Eagles at Cardinals

As 2009 begins, the Vice-President of NFL Officiating, Mike Pereira, has finally responded to one of the most common complaints regarding the referees of NFL games. The fact that the officials are part-time employees is a sore spot among many fans of the game. You may read the full story at: CBS Sportsline

“Full-time doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be any better” Pereira said.

This is ridiculous. Referees should be full-time employees on a year-around basis. There is a tremendous amount of material available which could be utilized to hone their skills during the off-season. Referees should be treated as a separate 33rd franchise in the National Football League with Pereira as their coach.

Pereira said: “There’s only so much you can do. There’s only so much video to look at.”

Is it really such an absurd thought that skills that are not utilized diminish over time? Why would NFL referees be any different?

Pereira is also quoted as saying: “I think most people think they (the officials) show up an hour before kickoff, and an hour after kickoff, they’re at the bar having a beer.”

I don’t know about Mr. Pereira, but I don’t know *anybody* that thinks this… This flippant characterization of NFL fans is indicative of someone out-of-touch with the fan base. NFL fans know that refs work very hard and want to provide the best officiating services possible. However, dividing the attentions of these professionals between a “real world” job and their part-time gig with the NFL is a continued recipe for disaster. United we stand; divided we fall.

Also, in an Associated Press article from just a little over a week ago, Mr. Pereira indicated that the rules in the NFL rulebook were so complex that he has to personally “..keep reading it all the time..” and that “This game’s been around for so long, and each year there are issues that are brought up by clubs and by players and by the league which are appropriate changes. And when you have this many years gone by it tends to get complicated..”

NFL Referees are paid professionals. They are paid to get things right. When they fail, the “legitimate” financial implications are enormous - for the players, the coaches, the teams, and the cities/states. The NFL often turns a blind eye to gambling and a deaf ear to the cries of gamblers affected by bad referee calls, but the need for the league to step up and take actions to improve the quality of officiating is undeniable.

The league has a responsibility to players that have incentive laden contracts, to coaches that are ultimately held accountable to win-loss records, to entire teams that lose out on revenue from merchandise and concession sales, and the cities and states that lose out on tourism and tax revenue from playoff games.

The league has a vested interest in NFL officials making the correct call. This is not the 1960’s when controversy and water cooler discussion created free viral marketing for the NFL. The transparency of bad calls is undeniable. The hiring of NFL officials as full-time employees that put in 40 hour work weeks to learn and teach the nuances of the vast complexities of the NFL rulebook would be the first step to improving the quality of the product that is put on the field.

-ZebraMan