Officiating was a major topic of conversation during Sean Payton’s visit to The Dan Patrick Show on Thursday.
Payton shared his belief that officials should have full-time jobs with the NFL and said that everyone involved in the NFL deserves better officiating than there’s been this season. One of the most contentious officiating issues this season as been the point of emphasis that’s been placed on taunting calls.
Payton was on the NFL’s Competition Committee when the decision was made to emphasize taunting penalties and he said on Thursday that the way the foul is being called differs from what the group was trying to accomplish when they made that decision.
“I think it’s being over-officiated,” Payton said. “I sat in on the discussions I don’t think any of us who discussed it saw it where it is now.”
Payton said the idea was to eliminate players standing over opponents or “crawl over players with their crotch” by establishing a “bright” line that everyone agreed was taunting. That line hasn’t been a uniform one this season and Payton has plenty of company when it comes to frustration with how it shifts from game to game.
