James J. Cochran, professor of applied statistics in the Culverhouse College of Business at the University of Alabama, helped ESPN run an analysis to see if officiating is routinely affecting National Football League team outcomes. The result? More-penalized teams do not lose more often.
“It tells us that we do not have evidence of any systematic bias in penalties called in the NFL over the past several years,” Cochran wrote in an email. “I am sorry for the fans who believe the NFL referees are biased against their favorite team, but it isn’t so.”
Check out the article and dive into Cochran’s full analysis.
Leave a Reply