The NFL and NFL Referees Association (NFLRA) have finally agreed to a new CBA. Thank goodness they did, because a return to replacement refs would do more harm than good. There is still more work to do, though.
Especially with horrible officiating being an epidemic in the NFL. It’s been killing the product for many years now, and it seems like the NFL hasn’t bothered trying to fix it. There is a simple 3-step plan to fix the officiating issues in this league.
Step #1 Make These Refs Full-Time
It is fascinating that every NFL ref on the payroll is a part-time employee. With how much money the league makes, that is absolutely unacceptable. Why not improve the product by making these officials full-time? Either this league is too greedy or cheap to make it happen, which is ridiculous.
Make these refs full-time and do it now. Who cares if it’s an extra expense? The league needs to think of it as an investment. A hefty salary increase and giving more motivation to do better at their jobs, along with improving the product in the field.
Step #2 Put A Sky Judge On The Crew
The Alliance of American Football was a dysfunctional league that ceased operations in 2019, but there is a lot of positive that came out of that league. One of those positives is the creation and implementation of the sky judge. The person in this role is located in the booth and uses video replay to correct calls that were missed on the football field.
It was a brilliant move that helped make the AAF stand out and provided an extra level of insurance to make the game fair. It’s just a shame that the league couldn’t get the funding in place because the football and officiating were awesome.
It makes zero sense that the NFL has not implemented this, and that needs to change. Look at how heinous officiating has hurt the sport in the past few years. Implementing a sky judge to look at questionable calls would help the NFL avoid moments that discourage fans. It’s a nice insurance policy to protect the integrity of the game and enforce the proper rules. Then again, this is the same league that thought bringing back the replacement refs was a good insurance plan.
3. Retrain Every Ref In The Offseason
With step 1 of NFL officiating complete, it’s time to implement a full-blown training program in the offseason. These referees need retraining, an update on the new rules, and testing of the new technology the league plans to utilize. There should be zero excuses, and this training would be paid, as they would be full-time employees. The training needs to be implemented further and taken a lot more seriously with constant blatant mistakes. Human error is going to happen, and the technology will help fix it.
It’s Time To Improve NFL Referees
The NFL clearly did not learn after that disgraceful 2018 NFC Championship game between the Saints and Rams. That is a moment that the NFL refs have not recovered from, and the league needs to take this seriously. The trust in the officiating is at an all-time low. The NFL can’t ignore this issue, and while Goodell says he trusts these refs, that’s hard to believe, given how long the CBA negotiations dragged out.
Now it’s time to fix the officiating on the field, before it’s too late. It’s the NFL’s choice on whether to fix the officiating or be laissez-faire with the issue.
