Lions Don't Want to Rely on NFL Referees to Win: 'We’ll Do It Ourself'

Detroit Lions team president Rod Wood was asked about the officiating issues that plague the NFL.

When it comes to supporters of the Detroit Lions, there is at least one thing to unite around. 

The officials that are in charge of calling games are certainly against Detroit. Aren't they?

Well, in a league that clearly has issues with officiating, Lions fans are still frustrated with the roughing-the-passer call made against safety Tracy Walker this past Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

Team president Rod Wood would not bite on the narrative that the league has some personal vendetta against Detroit or its fans. 

© Kirthmon F. Dozier via Imagn Content Services, LLC

“I understand where you’re coming from. I think we have a really good relationship with the league, notwithstanding some of the evidence to the contrary," he said. 

He added, "I have a lot of contacts in the league that I talk to regularly. I think they are as supportive as they can be, and I don’t think (they) intentionally treat us any different than other teams, even though it might appear that way."

Recall, Detroit petitioned the league to move its Week 16 game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers back just one day, but was denied.

As a result, Lions interim head coach Darrell Bevell, defensive coordinator Cory Undlin and several defensive coaches missed the contest due to COVID-19 protocols.

"With regard to rescheduling the (Buccaneers) game, certainly it could’ve been done. But, the game had been moved to Saturday. It was a national TV game. I don’t think that we were treated any worse than Denver was a few weeks ago when they had to play a wide receiver from their practice squad at quarterback," Wood said. "There’s been other teams unfortunately that have had difficult issues with COVID-19, and this was our turn. I understand why they made the decision. We asked, but I don’t think it was because of any ill will towards the Detroit Lions on that front."

Instead of dwelling on the numerous bad calls that have gone against Detroit over the years, Wood is hoping the team develops to the point where it can overcome any obstacles -- even those presented by league officials. 

“Officiating, clearly we had our share of calls that we wish went the other way. I think a lot of other teams probably feel the same way, too. I do see reports after every game that we send into the league, asking about specific calls. Quite often, they acknowledge it probably could’ve gone the other way. Sometimes, they point out that we’re wrong and how we look at it," Wood commented. "So, we have a good relationship with the league, and hopefully, we don’t have to rely on a ref’s calls to win games, because we’ll do it ourself. That’s what we should be trying to do.”

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