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XFL’s New Rule in Display Engages NFL Fans in a Heated Debate

Published 02/20/2023, 12:30 PM EST

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USA Today via Reuters

The 2022 NFL campaign had its championship crowning last Sunday, and the alleged “rigged” scenarios this season made the fans rage throughout the year. However, the newly relaunched XFL seem to be doing a far better job of handling public sentiments around officiating decisions with their improved replay system.

The XFL went with a much more transparent roadmap in officiating the close calls. And when the videos came after the first quarter of the Arlington and Vegas game, NFL fans were outraged by the lack of a similar process in the top-tier league. And some think this disparity is likely to continue in keeping with the “scripted” framework.

XFL’s new rule frustrates NFL fans

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The XFL, under the ownership of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, his former wife and business partner Dani Garcia, and RedBird Capitals, relaunched after 2020. And the league showed off their three-screen split play review process during their ESPN broadcast. And NFL fans want some of that in the big leagues too.

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The unambiguous line of communication between on-field referee Mike Vandervelde and XFL’s VP of officiating and rules innovation, Dean Blandino, impressed viewers across the spectrum. However, the NFL world doesn’t hope for a change. “Too much transparency. NFL will never let it happen,” one fan commented on the video.

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The NFL already has a ref in the booth for games. So this will be easy to implement,” one optimist replied. However, another quickly burst the bubble. “The script is the reason the NFL can’t or won’t do it,” he said. “Then the refs can’t rig the game,” one fan wrote, while another commented, “The NFL is scripted. That’s why.

Even the Super Bowl had its share of controversies

The Super Bowl LVII showdown at the State Farm Arena last Sunday saw Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs clinch the world championship after beating the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35. However, the ultimate minutes of the game had some controversial calls that favored the Chiefs. And Eagles fans were not happy. The Eagles received a crucial penalty from a James Bradberry holding call on JuJu Smith-Schuster.

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However, the NFL has since released footage from incriminating angles to prove that the call on the field was the right one. And even though Bradberry confessed to the holding himself, fans think the refs are pulling all the strings. “Refs still gonna call a crazy penalty in Chiefs’ favor for the opposing team to lose,” one angry fan commented on the XFL video.

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According to the online footballing community, Roger Goodell and the NFL executives have an uphill task to bring the officiating standards in the league to meet their standards. And maybe the XFL can provide some pointers. “XFL about to take over,” one fan commented.

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Written by:

Soumyapriyo Ganguly

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Soumyapriyo Ganguly is an NFL writer at Essentially Sports. He holds a degree in Economics and Statistics from the Indian School of Business and Finance. Rivu is a sports nerd with his favorites being Soccer, American Football, Basketball, UFC, and Formula 1.
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Edited by:

Hitesh Nigam