If the NFL wants to turn the page on a player criticizing bad officiating, the NFL probably should think twice about fining a player for criticizing bad officiating.
Regardless, Big Shield has struck back at Browns defensive end Myles Garrett. Via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, the league has fined Garrett $25,000 for his criticism of officials after last weekend’s win over the Jaguars.
“The officiating was a travesty today,” Garrett said during his post-game press conference. “It was honestly awful. And the fact that they’re letting them get away with hands to the face, holding, false starting — I know they called a couple, but damn, they could have called it all game. And [there was] the one that cost us down on the 2-yard line.
“I mean, respect to those guys, it’s a hard job, but hell, we have a hard job as well. You can’t make it harder by throwing holding and hands to the face out the rulebook. And like I said, I got a lot of respect for those guys, but we get scrutinized for the plays that we don’t make. So someone has to hold them accountable for the plays or the calls they don’t make. And they need to be under the same kind of microscope as we are every single play.”
Garrett’s words are identical to observations made here and on PFT Live. (Fortunately, they can’t fine us.) The officials are looking the other way on various fouls committed by offensive linemen because, currently, defensive linemen are so much better than the men trying to block them.
“This ‘Hack-a-Shaq’ crap has got to stop,” Garrett said. “This, ‘Y’all are as dominant as we’ve seen, and we are going to let him get away with pretty much anything’ — it’s ridiculous. You can’t just let a guy put his fingers in your face mask and push your head up or grab you around the back of your collar, or when he’s out of position, so he’s going to snatch you from the front — all that stuff we see, but we try to promote the offensive game. It’s got to be called fair both ways. I don’t care about any of that — offense, defense has to be held to the same standard in more ways than one.”
Garrett said Friday that he doesn’t regret what he said, and that he’s hoping it has a “positive effect” on officiating. The fact that the league saw fit to fine him says otherwise.
The league clearly doesn’t want the criticism, or the scrutiny. The Commissioner clearly resented the fact that he had to defend this week’s criticism of officials over a call that was technically correct in the Bills-Chiefs game. (Of course, the player in question was technically offside on multiple occasions before the flag was thrown. For some reason, the flag only came out when the outcome of the game was hanging in the balance.)
Fining someone like Garrett $25,000 won’t get players to stop doing it. Especially those who make the most money. As Randy Moss famously said after being fined for pretending to moon the fans at Lambeau Field, “What’s ten grand to me?” And he wasn’t making anything close to Garrett’s $25 million per year.
For Garrett, $25,000 is 0.1 percent of his total annual compensation. Also, the money goes to charity.
Moreover, the fact that he was fined becomes an occasion for people like me to hit the “caps lock” button and type, “MYLES GARRETT IS RIGHT.”
The league ls relaxing the enforcement of rules like false start, hands to the face, and holding in order to give offenses an edge. Ditto for intentional grounding and roughing the passer.
It’s all about keeping offenses moving and quarterbacks playing. Even if it’s not hurting the ratings, it’s still better to have the best players playing at their best. Tilting the playing field in favor of offensive linemen and quarterbacks helps get there.
Making the decision to fine Garrett more glaring is the fact that he did not question the personal integrity of the officials. Years ago, the NFL explained that players get fined only when they cross the line between calling out a bad call and calling the official corrupt.
Last month, Steelers receiver Diontae Johnson did just that, and he paid the price. Garrett did not. But he still got fined.
He got fined for blowing the whistle on the current effort to help offenses. Which only makes it more glaring when, for example, a holding penalty is called on the Jaguars in overtime for the kind of infraction that isn’t called ALL THE TIME, wiping out a 43-yard gain that would have put Jacksonville on the brink of a victory. (They later lost to the Bengals.)
The rules should always be enforced as written. If the NFL wants to change the rules to allow holding or split-second false starts or tackles lined up two yards behind the line of scrimmage, they should.
The problem with these loose, unofficial failure to enforce the current rules sets the stage for someone to suddenly become a stickler, at a key moment. Which will only make some on the outside wonder whether the fix is in.
The league’s decision to fine Garrett is a clear sign that they’re trying to blow up that bridge before anyone tries to cross it. Frankly, it’s likely too late for that.
If anything, efforts to silence players for fair and accurate criticism will only tempt more observers to cross the “fix is in” bridge.