The temptation to fix games is there with so much money to be made/paid. But the conspiracy to keep it quiet makes it unlikely to me. Think of all the players who've (fairly or not) run afoul league rules and became vilified, suspended, fined, etc. I don't think Antonio Brown is keeping silent on fixing games. If you keep it to just coaches/management, I doubt Gruden stays quiet or Brian Flores or Hue Jackson. Maybe at the ownership level it can be secret but how much can they affect the games? At a macro level by hiring incompetents sure. But at a micro level game by game and play by play, all those players are trying to win.
Maybe the threat of losing benefits, pensions, etc, is enough to keep EVERYONE in line. But that didn't stop Canseco from selling guys out on steroids. In the NFL with fewer benefits and more roster churn, eh, maybe they can get a guy or a ref to toss a play or two at a critical moment but there's too much chance to (heh) bet on it influencing a game.
All in my opinion
Maybe the threat of losing benefits, pensions, etc, is enough to keep EVERYONE in line. But that didn't stop Canseco from selling guys out on steroids. In the NFL with fewer benefits and more roster churn, eh, maybe they can get a guy or a ref to toss a play or two at a critical moment but there's too much chance to (heh) bet on it influencing a game.
All in my opinion