Poor Sportsmanship in the NFL

       Anyone who has watched the NFL this season and its associated coverage is aware of a problem in the league. The normal Referees have been locked out by the NFL due to labor disputes. In their place, the League has provided replacement refs. They are referees from college, and semi-pro leagues. The result is games that are called very differently than they would otherwise have been, or so most sports pundits would have you believe. Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers spoke out recently against the replacement refs. The call made on Monday night cost the packers the game, and it followed another controversial call on Sunday night that cost the Patriots a game. The NFL has backed up both calls and yet players, coaches, and sports reporters alike continue the mantra of : Replacement refs are ruining the game.

        However, it seems to me this is a bit misguided. I will concede, as a fan of american football, that perhaps these refs are not perfect nor are they acceptable. We should expect better performance from the officials of the game. This does not in anyway absolve the participants of the game from their lack of sportsmanship.There were two important calls this past weekend that are most complained about. One is the field goal by the Ravens that was close, even if it did go through. The other is the touchdown catch in the endzone on the final play in the Packers-Seahawks game. Several fans, players, coaches, and reporters complained that these calls were egregious errors and show the need for the regular refs. Every year there are several calls that greatly impact the outcome of the game, and yet no one has complained at this level. Both calls, after review by the NFL, were upheld. To me the key difference is that, in these games, the calls favored the team that was not favored to win. Also, the fact remains, that only the ones who lost or were put at disadvantage by these calls are the ones who seem the most upset by them. I understand that you would feel bad if you felt a bad call cost you the game. I personally, can relate to those emotions. The question that I have is how come no one who benefited from these calls seems to complain about the refs on a general level? I understand they wouldn't believe a call that gave them the game was incorrect, but they should still be upset at the general level of disregard for calling certain penalties. This makes it apparent to me that those who complain are merely sore losers displaying poor sportsmanship.

        I would like to bring attention to the fact that I agree the regular refs are preferable. I also agree that the replacement refs have made some bad calls. So why think these complaints are illegitimate? It is because both teams have to play with equally bad refs. In this manner there is no in-equity. The refs are equally bad for both teams, and yet, only when they lose do the players and others associated with the game offer up such vitriol for the replacement refs. This is a text book example of poor sportsmanship and sore loosers. While it is true that we should expect better out of the Refs, we too should expect much better sportsmanship from the preeminent, even the professional sportsmen themselves.