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I think there are separate and distinct issues at hand. Calling "ticky tack" illegal contact fouls may be true, but what does that have to do with 8-8 teams making the playoffs?
I still enjoy watching NFL football, but I think you could call out coaching and specialization as reasons for boring games just as much as penalty filled games. Just like neutral zone trapping is effective in hockey but bores the crap out of most hockey fans, so does "safe" play calling and "playing the percentages" game planning make for a boring NFL game.
It's a copycat league. If something works for one team, you can bet 20 ther teams will roll out a version of it, often with less stellar results.
Players are judged by their times and test results at the combine more than their ability to play the game. Subsequently, we get a league filled with athletic specimens with sub-standard skills. They run like deer, jump like deer and think like deer.
You can lay all of this at the feet of the NFL - not just officiating and it's foibles.
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