The NFL is learning a very practical lesson in Identity and so should you…

How identity and definition have real consequences

Did you see that catch last night? Odell Beckham is busy redefining the concept. He seems to think it should only take one hand.

Of course we all know what a catch is. Or do we? Search the web for “Controversial Catches” and you will find dozens of examples for this season alone. Who thought it could be this hard? But then there is always a catch…

The NFL rule book has this definition.

A catch is made when a player inbounds secures possession of a pass, kick, or fumble in flight

This seems fairly straightforward. The rule book includes additional definition for terms like inbounds, possession, and the like. But then it goes further:

Note 1: It is a catch if in the process of attempting to catch the ball, a player secures control of the ball prior to the ball touching the ground and that control is maintained after the ball has touched the ground.

and then

Note 2: In the field of play, if a catch of a forward pass has been completed, and there is contact by a defender causing the ball to come loose before the runner is down by contact, it is a fumble, and the ball remains alive. In the end zone, the same action is a touchdown, since the receiver completed the catch beyond the goal line prior to the loss of possession, and the ball is dead when the catch is completed.

This is starting to sound like the drive-through scene from Dude, Where’s My Car. Worse still, in an effort to further define a catch, their definition is actually making it less clear.

It gets worse. By later in the rule book, specifically Rule 8 Article 3, the concept of a catch intersects with the concept of a completed pass. These two terms are considered roughly synonymous but of course there is a catch.

Note: the article quote above is a link to the NFL rule book pdf. I only ask my readers for five minutes or so of their time, so click only if you have more time to kill.

Putting things in context

This is not a problem limited to the NFL, professional sports, or competitive endeavors. Issues with identity and definition plague us. Setting aside subjective things like emotion, art, feelings, and the like-we find many objective concepts are not so clear.

The issue is context. Not to get too wonky — but our language is a vast array of abstract symbols. In other words, we over simplify everything. In most aspects of life, this is just easier. Too much complexity just gives people a headache. The lack of clarity on the margins is left to our better judgement. That judgement is made in the light of the context of our situation. And mostly, that works out just fine…

Competitive sports, law, science, data, education, and any type of important communication are not so lucky. Context kills. Okay that is extreme, but it makes a big mess of things. Context always biases judgement, right or wrong. Because of this, judgement is always subjective and by default inconsistent. And inconsistency is not something we have much patience for…

So what lesson should we take from the NFL?

We will have to wait and see. The NFL lesson is a beautiful case study. As such, it has several advantages. It is on full display for all of us to watch and learn. The feedback is near instantaneous. Unlike politics, science, and other similarly challenged areas-what the NFL does to address this issue will be visible the first game after the rule changes.

Unlike other disciplines, those changes will also be very quickly subjected to public opinion and half-baked analysis. But, with the NFL, that is just part of the entertainment…