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but it's not only Seahawk fans that saw how horrific the officiating was

A lot of uninformed viewers out there.

A lot of uninformed viewers out there.

That's right, the majority of Americans are wrong, but a handful of Pittsburgh fans are the "informed" ones. Trying to develop some form of elitism in the Steel city?

You may well be right that only the "informed" minority gets the fact that the officiating was good during XL.

The perception of the majority seems to be that it was not good. If the NFL wants to maintain credibility, that should concern them.

In the confines of a game, the calls are what they are, and the Seahawks players and coaches need only look in the mirror to see why they lost. They should then look at the Steelers to see the other part of the equation.

Bad calls are going to happen, it is part of the game. Indeed, it is interesting to ponder the reaction of Seattle fans had the key Pittsburgh plays been called back by penalty. I think the complaining would be as loud coming from Pittsburgh fans, and the Seattle fans would by and large remain smugly silent.

In the broader perspective of the sport, it is bad news when the majority of viewers perceive the officiating as poor or biased. A lot of judgment calls, like holding and interference, could be called on almost every play. It is up to the officials to judge when it is appropriate to throw the flag, and whether by good judgment, choice or chance those flags came out at critical moments, mostly against Seattle. That may well have been justified. A lot of folks seem to think that wasn't the case.

Unless the NFL is going to administer a test to see how informed a fan is before they take his or her money, it would behoove them to present a product that makes sense and seems fair even to the casual fan.