Sorry. I wasnt 100% last night when i typed that.
I just read it. Its mostly nonsense.

What i meant.
That the refs will see an infraction and toss a flag. In certain big play situations. An infration That mostly they usually ignore. To prevent a team from pulling away and being the moment that the blowout begins. We saw that gappen in the second ravens steelers game. A 1st galf drive where the ravens had a pair of nice runs. Ine a 40-50 yarder by derrick henry. The ravens were already up. Was it 7 pts? 10 pts? The ravens had all the momentum in the moment. Both of the long runs were reversed by penalties of the ticky tacky variety.
The ravens stalled out. What looked to be a coming 2 or 3 score lead. Evaporated.
On the other side. The steelers o-line began holding the balt D at a high rate. And those infractions arent flagged. The second galf played out with the 2 bigbplays from the steelers. That resulted in them catching up and taking the lead. Were marginal calls that again favored pitt.

It didnt fix the outcome. The ravens had a chance to win at the end. It wound up being an exciting finish in PRIME TIME!

That is the fix I refer to. The steelers never gad to also " beat the officials". The ravens had to overcome both, the other football team and the officials that called their players tight. And their opponent differently.

It was similar in the 2 teams 1st matchup. To the point of reimagining the rule book in real time.
The winning obbious game winning td overurned as time was running out.
And the sack fumble of rodgers. Both blatant blown calls. A loss there in that point if the steelers season. Would gave virtually clinched the division for the ravens. Made those 2 heavily televised teams remaining schedule. Filled with meaningless games. With 4 each remaining.

The past few seasons. The league has set records. In a 100+ year old league. For # if coemback wins amount if points overcome at half time. At the start of the 4th qtr. Aggregious defense holding or PI or illegal contact not called on the trailing team d. Oline holding not called on the trailing offense. And the team leading by 17. Their counterpart units. They are called really tight. A touch becomes a hold.

Now. It doesnt always result in a comeback victory. But its in plain view that it is an officiating aided exciting finish that had been a near certain blowout at halftime. Start of 4th qtr.

Comeback records that hadnt really been much to notice for 100 years. Drastically increase suddenly. Topped the bext season, then again the next, and the next, and the next.

Not many fans complain because the entertainment factor has become a certainty. There isnt a weekend that goes by now. In which every broadcast window does not contain 2 minute warning excitement. Contentious finishes are guaranteed every day that there is nfl on tv.

As gladiator said- " are we not entertained"

Without this level of officiating interference.
Would we still be seeing Seahawks vs Patriots in the superbowl? Who knows.

I will say this as certainty. The Ravens would have been a playoff team. Not the Steelers.

Anither blatant moment came in the Bronco championship loss.
All season long. For the past many seasons. The qb fumbles or throws an int. The defense returns it.
Was it an incomplete pass or down by contact is questionable in the moment. 100% the officials have been instructed to let it play out. A d they do. Even some where its really obvious not a change of possession. The refs let it play out.
Knowing it can be corrected quickly on review.

It was a rules/ officiating turning point that was needed and occured 10 or so seasons ago.
"Swallow the quick whistle".

Yet, we saw it. The quick whistle on the Stidham backwards pass play. It removed an obvious td off the scoreboard.
Now, the pats still scored. Some would say. No harm no foul.

The problem is. This is a chip game. Supposedly the best of the best officiating crew. And they didnt follow the long standing application if the rule book. In the moment. It was a gift. Everybody & their brother knew going in. Stidham at qb vs the pats? The broncos point output was going to be low. Likely very low. At that point in the game. Nobody knew. One of those famous unpredicted sudden snow squalls would blow in and shut down both offenses. In the moment? The defensive td by NE felt like the hinge point where the flood gates would open. There was still a lot of football remaining. I think the idea there from the officials. Denver needed aid to keep it close. The squall that arrives 15 minutes later saved denver from the blowout. The uncontested, uninteresting 4th quarter that causes the tv audience to change the channel.

That is the fix. Keep the tv audience tuned in on us. Btw. There was the final olympic tune ups being televised on other channels in skiing & figure skating.

That this is happening? That it is a league directive? Of that i have zero doubt.
Scripting the season. Start to finish?
I believe thats truly doubtful.
However. The league in its attempt to keep games close. It certainly does impact results every sunday. And, if theres communication between owners, and the bookies they are now legally allowed to have a share in. Which games are being targetted, which are not. For some zebra aided "closeness". It only adds to the narrative that there is some insider play occuring. Turning the nfl into a grift. Nationally televised fraud.

The last 2 seasons. I. A person that rarely bet on football. To use this belief i have. To load up on nfl teasers. Teasers being- bets where your odds are drastically lower. But you alter the point spread. As much as 13.5 points.

Ie. The steelers are a 7pt underdog at home vs the ravens? The seahawks are only a 3.5 pt favorite at home vs the niners?
Pkg those 2 games with one other. Buy the 10pts

The straight bet on that parlay pays about 4.5 to 1. The teaser pays (-120)
But. The teaser is near certain.
I added the over in the seattle game( 41.5)

My play was.
Steelers + 17
Seahawks + 6.5
Sf/sea over 31.5
A wager @ $60 won $50. The $60 in my account becomes $110

I could have middled it too and i think that would have still won.
Those lines would have been
Ravens +3 ( a tie i think)
49ers +13.5.
Under 51.5

I have middled the superbowl line.
I have confidence. The leagues ultimate showcase game. Will likely be coaxed close.. 5.5 spread allows for seattle to win or lose by 4.
And NE to win or lose by up to 15.
It feels like the perfect middler. Win both sides.

I feel confident seattle wins. However, Expecting
The zebras to "interfere" 5.5 feels like a tossup. A meaningless late score making the days SVP " Bad Beats" hilight show sunday night.

The vast majority of my teasers this season were the high underdog lines a team getting 7 points. Rarely lost by 17. Or 20.5 if you bought the full 13.5 available.

I won at an 80 - 90% clip this year. I didnt keep track. But i know where i started/ finished.
Approx + 5k. Many of those teased covers? I kinda chuckled at times. Seeing a bs call or 5 coasting my game to a cover.

Am i entertained?
For sure. And profiting. Free money without screwing somebody else over. Its a nice feeling. However. I would gladly trade the profit for a league my eyes know is fair, honest.

Dont ever however. Follow this idea ive only briefly discussed. There is a lot that goes into my weekly strategy. I put many hours in during the week reading. And i have been a " degenerate gambler" since i was a teenager in the bay area.
In thise days. The teamster truck drivers distributed " yellow cards". All the nfl games plus 20 or so college games.
I have a lifetime of lessons learned the hardway.
The biggest. Never bet your favorite team on a big play. The second. Nfl favorite teams carry inflated lines. As do a handful of college teams. But that changes over time. With information( who is heavily bet). Information the public isnt often given. Injury reports are hugely important. Unfortunately, theres little transparency there eirher. Ie. It became obvious this season. Baker Mayfield played through a serious arm injury. He accumulated other injuries and was never listed as anything more than probable. Same with Lamar Jackson. If you watched their games? You saw it. Star qb's playing at much lower ability than were accustomed. Other players. Many get the probable designation. Watching their play? Little or no drop off. Trying to get a straight answer reading the various sites that discuss such intricacies?
Good luck figuring whos spreading disinformation vs accurate. The disinformation seems more plentiful. I cant attest to the paid services.
For $299 per season, you get joe blows inside scoop. Instead. I try to tune in and watch. Some of each game every week. I trust my eyes. Not the narratives. Also study box scores. Theres hints in them if you know what to look for. And it takes experience to know what your reading. What it points to.

Id like to tell myself. Get a life dude. Believe you me. Its no longer in the cards. Ive discussed that. I am a coach potato for my remaining days.
My goal these past 5ish years. Keeping my brain active and challenged. Adding to the inheritance of my children. Theyre going to need as much as i can create.

If my health were available? Id pack it up. Sell off. Take extended trips to the islands i so enjoyed in days gone by. I would not have remarried. A month on jamaica. Skip down to Dominica. St Thomas. St John. Stop off in Grenada for at least a month. I visited that island the most. That & st Thomas. Made many friends in both.
End in the abc's Aruba, Bonnaire, Curacau. Possibly slide over to central america. I have a relation still in Costa Rica. I told him about the area " Jaco". I still wish i had bought the condo i looked into back then. Instead. He bought in a neighboring complex a couple years later. Those $150k condis are now million dollar properties.
I never managed to visit Cuba or Belize. I wish I had. I was talking with an old friend in Grenada not very long ago via email. He and my friends in costa ruca & st thomas relay the same take. The US dollar doesnt go as far as it did 15 years ago. But the locals are still friendly. Accept us gringos with open arms... Us nice ones. Not the angry white guy american. Theyre just tolerated.

Thats a pipe dream for me. If I wish to stay alive. I have to stay isolated. I get sick far too easily now. And its difficult to kick an infection or even a cold. As well. I sleep. A lot.
The things i enjoyed. Hiking. Sitting in a cafe making friends drinking. Eating the fresh local cuisine. Fish/seafood. Produce. All harvested in the last 24 hours. Taking in the night life. Smooching a local beauty. Its all no longer things i can enjoy. Being a couch potato. Its probably easier here in Bf idaho than the destinations i long for. Here? I know im not missing anything.
If I were in Grenada? St Thomas? Id be trying to enjoy the offered adventure. Wind up frustrated. Probably grow angry with my fate.
Its all good. I led a blessed, lucky & adventerous life.
Ph is right. I should write a book. They say. Write about what you know. Your experiences & adventures. Cull you characters from those youve known. I could write 2 or 3 books, lol.

Heck. Ive written enough here. Time spent on it here. Id probably have at least one finished by now in just the past year.

I wonder. In my declining state. Could i maintain the focus, discipline and mental continuity it would take.
Idk. I like how it is now. Write in the moment.
Let my mind wonder through 3 or 4 different topics that pop into my head. As evidenced in the short story ive just written.
God bless the 3 or 5 of you that read my blathering wondering script. Thanks for tolerating me. ✌️