Does the NFL fix games?
doubledragon
Posts: 23,171 ✭✭✭✭✭
We all saw the Bills vs Bucs game yesterday, do you honestly think the fix is in? Here is an interesting article on the conspiracy theory from the people that believe the NFL does fix certain high stakes or games of extreme importance.
Is NFL Rigged? Exposing The Truth
Football could easily be the most popular sport in the USA, and a large part of this can be attributed to the NFL.
The 32 NFL teams have consistently mesmerized fans with exceptional performance and extraordinary skills on the field.
The biggest football event, the Super Bowl, is watched all over the planet, and the match always gets to the viewers’ expectations. But what happens behind the scenes?
Are these games naturally played, or are there tricks fans don’t know about? Let us get a look into the NFL and answer this;
Is NFL Rigged?
You might not like it, but yes, the NFL rigs most of its high stake games, especially those leading to or in the Super Bowl. The rigging is mainly done by having referees and officials stack the odds against one team to give the other a victory.
In other cases, the players are instructed to throw the game since it is good for the league. The games are rigged to generate more money for sales and viewership depending on where the teams will play and the team’s number of fans.
How Does The NFL Benefit From Rigging Games?
There are a lot of reasons for the league to rig games if you look at it financially. The decision may be a bit difficult for the players, but what can you do about it? To get the whole picture, you need to understand how the NFL benefits from rigging games;
- Ticket sales
The NFL could fix matches to lead up to games of teams that will get them the highest possible number of tickets. The increased ticket sales will make more money both for the team and the league.
They can do this by having teams likely to host the Super Bowl win so that the local fans can fill the stadiums and increase sales and promotion for their sponsors. Getting popular teams to the Super Bowl works each time since this event is always sold out.
- Rating improvement
Everyone likes it when a movie goes in a direction they want it to go in. The same idea is used in sports where analysts figure out what most fans want in terms of victories, giving the masses what they want.
By doing this, the NFL ratings keep going higher, and they get more viewership, sponsors, and deals that make them money.
The money made by playing adverts is much higher if many viewers are watching a show.
The NFL will always want to have the highest number of users possible to keep the income high.
- To raise the Stakes of the Games
Everything in life becomes more enjoyable when planned out, and you don’t know about it. The same thing happens with NFL games; they are rigged to create rivalries and stiff competition between teams to get fans more interested.
As the number of fans increases, so does the money made by the NFL and the teams associated with it.
The picking of match-ups and the winners guarantee situations that end with fans coming back for more.
Letting the games play out by themselves could be dissatisfying for the fans and reduce the numbers. For this reason, the NFL management fixes the matches to go in a favorable direction.
The Most Rigged Football Games
We all like a good conspiracy theory, especially when dealing with sports. Some conspiracies have no basis, while some have too much evidence to ignore. Here are some of the NFL’s most rigged games;
- Super Bowl XL
If you look at the final score in this match, it seems like there is no controversy since the Steelers easily won 21-10. This score, however, does not tell the whole story.
In this match-up, the SeaHAWKS got flagged on multiple occasions on crucial calls that were obvious to everyone. It seemed like they were playing against the Steelers and the officials that night.
You would mostly shrug off cases like this as fans who hate the other team getting emotional and lying, but this was different.
A few years later, Bill Leavy, a referee from the Steelers game, opened up and confessed to throwing the game.
- Super Bowl III
The Colts came into the Super Bowl as fan favorites against the Jets. The Colts had had a fantastic season, and they won all their games with over 20 points except for one game in the entire season.
In the Super Bowl, however, the Colts lost to the jets 16-7. They were led by Earl Murray, who is among the most amazing football players to ever participate in the NFL.
Murray completed only 6 of his 17 passes, and three were intercepts.
It seemed evident that the Colts had intentionally thrown the game. Most people believe the Colts were paid off to lose the game to make the AFL look more legitimate.
- Dallas Cowboys Vs. Green Bay Packers 2014 Divisional Match
The Packers were ahead with a 25-21 lead with only 5 minutes left on the clock. Tony Romo had his wide receiver, Dez Bryant sprinting down the left sideline, and Bryant leaped to grab the ball over the defender.
The Packers challenged the catch, and to the surprise of all viewers, the call was overturned without any inconclusive evidence.
This turnover cost the Cowboys the game, but three years later, the NFL admitted that Dez caught the ball.
The list goes on with referees making calls that don’t make sense or teams underperforming to the extent that any logical reasoning cannot explain.
The officials have to do what they are told is best for the NFL, and they make the games go in the league’s favor.
Sport’s Betting’s Role In Sports Rigging
The working of a betting organization is rather complex, but we can simplify it. Participants place a bet for each team, and if your team wins, you get more money, and if it loses, you lose your money.
The money that goes to the winners is not that much. This leaves the companies or people running the betting business with the most money.
To add more money, they control the matches to end in their favor.
By making a highly ranked and favored team lose, the betting company gets more money since many people bet on the team.
If the team wins, they lose a lot of money since fewer people bet against it, and they have to pay with their money.
As of 2018, sports betting is legal in the United States, and it has brought up some issues with games getting rigged. There are some significant negative contributions it has brought about, and let us look at them;
- It has led to poor officiating of games
This is a story apparent in almost every sports league, from the NBA, the NFL, and others. This happens when the officials in a game take part in gambling.
When officiating a match, a referee could be paid off to make the team lose for someone else to make extra money.
There are several cases of refs admitting to this, such as the NBA coach who was imprisoned for his crime for 15 months.
- Destruction of talent in players
Some shady people at times approach key players and offer them bribes to throw the game. This is advantageous to those that bet for that team’s victory, and the lost money goes to the betting company.
If players get involved in such practices, it makes them unreliable, and the team might drop them.
This might cost young athletes a big opportunity and possibly ruin their life if they have nothing to fall back to.
Imagine going through training for months only to lose a game because someone told you to throw it. It can be demoralizing and painful for everyone involved with the team, including the loyal fans.
The NFL and all the other Sports associations need to protect athletes from such eventualities.
While some people make money betting on sports, 99% lose their money, so it is not profitable.
Conclusion
The NFL rigs some of its matches to make more money. This unbelievable claim has been confirmed by numerous sources from within the NFL, including referees, players, coaches, and high-ranking officials.
The NFL could lose its ratings if the games played out naturally and they are not willing to risk it.
They mostly tamper with high stake games such as the Super Bowl games or big games that determine the teams which will go to the Super Bowl.
There are games whose tampering was so obvious, and they raised a lot of eyebrows. Incidences such as referees celebrating with a team after a touchdown show clear favoritism in the NFL.
Legalizing sports betting has had a significant effect on how games are played in all fields. More people are trying to change match outcomes in unconventional ways, and it messes up the players.
Comments
money is the root of all evil. the lengths that individuals, corporations et al. will go to to prosper knows no bounds. unless you were born under a rock and/or are delusional, then you knew this already
so if it came to light that things are not on the up and up in the NFL, then that revelation should only come to the surprise of those who were born under a rock and/or are delusional
That comment about the head referee of Super Bowl XL, Bill Leavy, admitting to throwing Super Bowl XL is based on Bill Leavy once stating that "I kicked a few calls" in Super Bowl XL. Also, in 2019 Denis Ranahan, a handicapper/bookie claimed that Bill Leavy was a client of his and that Bill Leavy bet on football games. I don't know what to make of all of that, but those are the stories floating around out there.
Bubba Smith who played for the Baltimore Colts claimed that Super Bowl 3 was fixed.
Bubba Smith Always Alleged 69 Super Bowl Was Fixed
Pro football great Bubba Smith claimed for much of his adult life that the 1969 Super Bowl between his Baltimore Colts and the New York Jets was “fixed.”
The Jets beat the heavily-favored Colts in Super Bowl III in one of the biggest upsets in U.S. sports history. Aided by five costly Colt turnovers, the Jets won 16-7, preceding the even more phenomenal World Series victory by the New York Mets by nine months.
The victory not only sealed the legend of Jets quarterback Joe Namath (who famously “guaranteed” a win three days prior to the game), but it also established the legitimacy of the American Football League (AFL), which at that time was seeking to merge with the National Football League (NFL).
Smith, a superlative defense lineman for the Colts, intimated in his biography and in various interviews that the game was “set up” for the Jets to win (although he never provided any concrete evidence).
The conspiracy theory seems to be that the NFL “needed” the high-profile, glamorous New York team to be champions in order to solidify the merger, sustain the league’s popularity and thereby generate millions of dollars in revenue to all teams in the league. (At the time, the New York Giants were a very poor club.)
Reportedly, Smith’s credibility was given a boost by some questionable decisions by Colts quarterback Earl Morall and coach Don Shula in the game. After a spectacular MVP season in 1968, Morall performed poorly in the Super Bowl – among other things, he threw three interceptions.
In one particularly controversial play, in the second quarter Morall failed to see receiver Jimmy Orr who was wide open in the end zone and instead threw a short pass down the middle which was picked off by a Jet defender.
Ironically, Morall later followed Shula to the Miami Dolphins.
Smith also claimed that Colts owner Carroll Rosenbloom bet against his own club in the game.
Moreover, Jets quarterback Namath eventually was found to have ties to New York City mobsters. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle forced "Broadway Joe" to sell his ownership in a Manhattan club that was frequented by gangsters.
The “fixing” case will likely never be proven, but the fact is that Super Bowl III provided a springboard for the NFL’s huge popularity that has been sustained for more than four decades.
I mean, you absolutely have to trust an article that gets Earl Morrall's name wrong, right?
I don't think Roger Goodell would allow games to be fixed, does this look like a man who would stoop to such things?
no, i dont think its fixed. there is far far far far far more money to be lost if the public ever found out. as in, the NFL would probably go bust.
can individuals go rogue? sure. i could see an official take a kickback to throw calls. it has happened in the NBA. but as for a far reaching conspiracy of it coming down from the league. nope
and I cant stand Goodell. but I don't think he is fixing games.
If you really thought it was rigged, why would you watch? I mean, I wouldn't.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
I am torn on this, I mean the NFL has been around long enough that I would have to believe would be exposed at some point somehow.
The problem that I have with it clearly being fixed is the amount of moving parts to be involved to make a cheat absolutely happen. The coaches, the players, the referees. That is a LOT of moving parts.
Do I believe that the human element of referees can influence a game? 100% yes but only under certain circumstances, I mean to guarantee a swing before the game is even played would be so obvious but in a close game it absolutely can and probably does happen.
I agree, that the conspiracy would have to be too big. I mean, it would be a 50 year running conspiracy according to the article. no way. someone, or dozens of someones would have talked and written books etc.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
think back to the 2019 NFL Champ game between the Rams and Saints. the one where Nickell Robey-Coleman stopped just short of committing manslaughter on Tommylee Lewis. unless Stevie Wonder was the line judge and Ray Charles was the field judge, then a valid explanation was in order as to why there was no laundry on the field, because that egregious no-call put a big market team in the Super Bowl and left a small one out.
can you imagine if a gaffe like that left a big market team on the outside looking in? those officials would have had a pink slip glued to the apparel they planned on changing into after the game
I think so......and so do a lot of other people that I know......and......they would know....... i.e., common knowledge.
Cowboys, Packers, Saints, and now the Bucs. It's what it is. COWBOYS!!!!!! AMERICAS TEAM!!!!! TV RATINGS!!!!!$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$!!!!!!!
my last comment on this topic
if you don't think it's possible for pro sports to be rigged to the point of determining who moves on and who is out, then i invite you to go dig up Game 6 of the 2001-02 Western Conference Finals between the LA Lakers and Sacramento Kings and watch it intently. i know @larryallen73 saw it, so hopefully he'll swing by and expound on what he observed. i personally watched the entire game and it was one of the most disgusting spectacles i've witnessed in all my years as a sports fan
I thought about deleting my previous posts on this topic.....but....after reading Galaxy ^. No. It's what it is........I remember watching wrestling at the Olympic Auditorium. Gorgeous George? Dak Prescott? It's all the same.
I don't think the NFL rigs games. That said, there's absolutely no question that certain teams get help and certain teams that get punished, just based on their names. Does anybody REALLY believe that the Packers and Lions are officiated equally?
That said, if you're inclined to believe they fix games, Super Bowl XL is Exhibit A. That game would have been officiated better by a group of people who've never seen football before. Soooooo many horrible calls and non-calls in that one. Matt Hasselbeck got called for a 15-yard penalty for a "low block" on a play where he made a tackle!
As for the NBA, I absolutely believe they rig things. The aforementioned 2002 Lakers/Kings series is just the most obvious example. Dallas/Miami in 2004 is another. And there was a Bucks series several years ago where the Bucks flat-out said afterward that the series was rigged. They didn't dance around it at all.
p.s. the refs got that Dez Bryant incompletion call right.
This is all starting to make sense to me now, I think they are conspiring to keep the Panthers, a team that isn't highly marketable mind you, from succeeding. They don't want us to succeed, and this explains why Cam Newton sucks!
I thought Cam was back?!!? Isn't that what he told us after his massive 1-yard run in his first game with Carolina? Is he not actually BACK?!!?!?!?
money is the root of all evil.
actually, it's "Love of money is the root of all evil" and it grows out of the Biblical passage of serving two Masters: You can't serve God and mammon at the same time, because you'll love one and hate the other, etc.(maybe not verbatim, but close enough).
what it comes down to is Greed, one of the Seven Deadly Sins, and responsible for an awful lot of bad things in the World. I don't think games are fixed, there would be too many people involved and no way to keep them all silent and in line.
keets wrote: I don't think games are fixed, there would be too many people involved and no way to keep them all silent and in line.
My thoughts exactly, especially for "team" sports. On the other hand, for "individual" sports (boxing, tennis, etc.). I can certainly see the possibility of intentionally losing to make a big profit.
Yes, unfortunately he is back and they even made T-shirts to capture the moment. If anyone is interested in one, they're available at online retailers, and don't worry, there are plenty in stock. PLENTY!
In my opinion Boxing is 100% fixed when whoever wants it to be
There's no question with regard to tennis. There have been numerous examples of it with multiple players getting banned:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Match_fixing_in_tennis
but the cowboys are probably the most followed team. they haven't won the big game in over 25 years. If this was being rigged, why no cowboys?
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
No pass interference (or helmet to helmet) called because the NFL wanted the Rams (with better tv ratings) in the Superbowl. Has there ever been a more obvious and clear-cut pass interference play?
My Coin Blog
My Toned Lincoln Registry Set
because the cowboys suck?
My Coin Blog
My Toned Lincoln Registry Set
I remember back in November 2020, Chicago Bears running back Benny Cunningham said the NFL was scripted, but I don't believe he ever told the full story of his claim.
Let me put it like this, if thisistheshow climbs all the way back to become the first repeat champion, the only thing left to say will be This Is The Show .
"I spent 50% of my money on alcohol, women, and gambling. The other half I wasted.
Well just look at the Cincy-49rs game yesterday. In overtime Burrow passes his team all the way down to the 15 and looks for sure to gonna win the game with a possible 4 passes to the end zone predicted. 1st and ten - does he continue to pass to get the touchdown? Hell no, the coach calls 2 run plays for no yards then a weak pass attempt brings up 4rth and they kick a field goal. SF gets the kickoff and what do they do? Pass all the way down the field for the winning TD. Hmmmmm..........
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Oh yeah - forgot this one.......... Tonight the Cardinals look like the Lions and The Rams look like a for sure SuperBowl team............Scripted or just "One of those games" ????????
PS - Hopkins just happened to drop his first pass of the season on 4rth and goal.
And indeed the back and forth makes for an interesting game to watch - Kinda like WWE when the Big guy is beating the crap out of the little guy but then the tables turn and the audience goes wild..................
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"