"We have a basic rule in the NFL," says a former law-enforcement official who advises the NFL on security matters. "It is to keep it upbeat and keep it positive. But, above all, they want to keep everything quiet." [16] That's the way it is in the NFL today. Keep all potential problems within the League. The only press that's allowed is cleared by the League office. According to the NFL's drug program, the League's "drug czar" has been banned from speaking with the press. [17]

In order to receive his pension, former League treasurer Austin H. Gunsel had to sign a contract with a gag clause reminiscent of those required of retiring CIA officers: ". . . neither shall Gunsel, without the prior consent of the Commissioner of this League, publish any newspaper or magazine article, book or publication, nor submit to any newspaper, radio or television or other interview or program which discusses, involves, or refers to the affairs or activities of the Nation Football League, its officers or employees, or to any of the member clubs thereof, or their owners, officers, employees or others holding any interest therein." [18]

Players, too, are not immune to this type of censorship. Both players and coaches are fined for making degrading remarks regarding poor officiating. They can even be fined for speaking about things not deemed to be in the NFL's best interest (like baseball's John Rocker). "The very nature of a football player, and one of the essential elements to ever get to the NFL, is to maintain ranks . . . Football is a game that requires the discipline and unquestioning obedience of a soldier. Right of wrong, the fact is that all football players are programmed to march to a certain beat." [19] This is true both on and off the field. Players, throughout their playing career, are taught to toe the line. Break the rules, and you're cut. Even after players leave the game, it is rare to hear a bad word spoken about the NFL. Maybe this is because all ex-NFL players draw some sort of pension from the NFL and the players' union.

Coincidence or a Fix?

Anyone who has watched football has seen games or plays that seemed just too good to be true, games where the play on the field somehow matched or beat the pre-game hype. Could it be coincidence? Maybe. But I believe it to be more.

Take Super Bowl XXX, played in 1995 between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys. The Steelers lost the game 27-17 because of two statistically-unusual plays – two Neil O'Donnell interceptions. Going into that game, O'Donnell had the lowest interception per pass attempt ratio in NFL history. Yet here he threw two passes that were seemingly gift wrapped for Cowboy Larry Brown (who was named Super Bowl MVP). In the following off-season, both O'Donnell and Brown signed multi-million dollar free agent contracts with other teams, going on to careers of mediocrity.

Absent evidence of outright payoffs, a subtler mechanism exists for the NFL to potentially coerce its players into fixing games. Consider a player who gets into trouble (be it for steroids, drunken driving, etc.) With 21% of NFL players finding themselves in some sort of legal trouble, there are plenty to choose from. When NFL Security catches this player – and he will be caught – the League may pull him aside and explain his options: "Okay, you broke the rules. Now we can do one of two things. We can make this known to the press and basically end your playing days, or you can keep playing and make your fortune, but from this point on, you play for us." Keep in mind that just one play, and just one player, can alter the outcome of a football game. Be it a field goal attempt, an interception, or a fumble, one player can change everything. Something as simple as a missed block, a botched snap, or biting on a pump fake, can be the difference between maintaining a drive or being forced to punt.

Players as Patsies

Certainly, not all games are fixed, and many NFL players engage in honest play for their entire careers. In fact, it may be that most players are unwitting patsies in the NFL conspiracy.

Coaches have a huge sway over what happens on the field and are directly responsible to the owner. It is the coach that decides who plays and how. Conceivably, a player who won't "play ball" might not see the ball at all during the game. This might explain an unusual benching in the 1999 AFC Playoffs, when Buffalo Bills starting quarterback Doug Flutie was benched in favor of back-up Rob Johnson. Johnson hadn't started a single game during the entire year, but he was coach Wade Phillips' choice to play this critical game, while a healthy Flutie sat the game out. Buffalo went on to lose the game to the Tennessee Titans on the famous "home-run throwback" play (itself a disputed call). Could it be that Flutie was benched because he wouldn't lose the game for the League?

Coaches influence every play. What might seem like bad performance on a player's part may instead be an ill-advised play sent in from the sidelines. Take what happened in Super Bowl XXXII. Late in the fourth quarter with Denver knocking on their goal line, Green Bay Packer head coach Mike Holmgren admittedly told his defense to lie down and allow Denver's Terrell Davis to score a touchdown. He defended his action, saying he wanted to leave enough time for his offense to come back and score. However they never did. Davis's touchdown won the Super Bowl for the Broncos.

Like the players they rule over, coaches also have "run-ins" with the law. As detailed in Pros and Cons, Minnesota Vikings head coach Dennis Green and assistant Richard Solomon were investigated by the team for charges of sexual harassment on more than one occasion in the 1990s. A married man, Green paid a woman he had an affair with to have an abortion so it wouldn’t ruin his career. [20] Another of Green's assistants, Carl Hargrave, had a DUI offense against him while with the team. To the frustration of their fans, the Vikings never seem to reach the Super Bowl despite a talented roster.

Then there are the referees -- the only people on the field directly employed by the NFL. To a large degree, and despite claims to the contrary, they control what happens on the field. The penalties they call can alter a play, the score, and hence the outcome of a game.