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The NFL locked out their referees in early June. Here we are more than three months later with no end in sight. The preseason and first two weeks of regular season action were filled with blown calls, mishandling of timeouts and stage fright whenever the replacements got on the mic. Current and former players have voiced their frustrations while the fans have been witnessing a lackluster product on a weekly basis.
The NFLRA, the referee union, is standing strong as they should. The NFL makes billions of dollars annually and refuses to give their players guaranteed deals and just now started providing a worthy healthcare plan. They also refuse to pay the guys that are supposed to keep the game clean and safe, which is kinda counterproductive given what the NFL gave up in the new CBA. Roger Goodell hasn't done a good job since taking over for Paul Tagliabue in 2006. Even Tagliabue was able to get D-I level refs when he was faced with the same situation in 2001. So, to get more knowledge about what's going on, check out our breakdown of the ramifications and reasons behind the NFL referee lockout.
Written by Angel Diaz (@graffnameramo)
Integrity of the Game
Yes, the regular refs made mistakes too, but some of the ones the replacement referees have made are down right embarrassing. They've fumbled numerous calls leading up to Week 1, including calling a touchback on a punt that was clearly down around the 5-yard line. The call was so bad, the NFL got the evidence taken off Youtube; or at least tried to.
They put two footballs out on the field, can't get their words out in a clear sentence and—according to Mario Williams—refused to call face mask penalties during Week 1's Bills vs. Jets game. Many of the replacement refs have never officiated D-1 games, only D-II or lower and you can tell by how they huddle up after every call. Some have even officiated Lingerie League "football games," if you want to call them that. During the Seahawks vs. Cardinals game, the replacement refs gave the Seahawks a fourth timeout with 30 seconds left. That gaffe almost cost Arizona the game if it wasn't for Braylon Edwards letting a ball slip throw his fingers in the endzone. Oh yeah, on top of all that there was the Broncos vs. Falcons game. SMH.
Player Safety
For a league that has been mired in health and safety issues as of late, the NFL's treatment of the whole situation has been downright reckless. The shield says they care about the players yet they're locking the people who determine what hits are illegal. There's about 1,200 years of experience between the 120-something locked-out officials being replaced with refs with zero experience. And now it looks like the replacement refs are going to be on until Week 5. The way things are looking, we might have to deal with these s(cr)ubs all season. At least, they'll get better come playoff time, right?
To be fair, aside from the complaints of Mario Williams, the replacements made the right calls in terms of helmet to helmet during Week 1. The league swears that the replacements have been trained and evaluated, but there's no way these new zebras can keep up with the speed of the NFL, especially if some only have experience chasing women dressed in underwear.
Money
According to ESPN's Darren Rovell, rookie NFL officials made $78K last year, five-year vets made $115K and officials with 10 years of experience made $139K. That comes out to an average of $149K per zebra. The NFL is looking to give them a five to 11 percent increase that'll bump that average up to around $189K by 2018, which isn't bad at all. The refs are looking for a little bit more, but the major issue are their retirement plans. The league wants the NFLRA to dead their pension plan in favor for a 401K plan that's tied to the stock market. The NFLRA has agreed to that change, but want the new officials to be put on the 401K while grandfathering in the pension plans of the old officials. Of course, the league spit on that concession and talks remain at a stalemate. Many officials opted out of their retirement benefits from their full-time jobs.
The NFL also would like to add three more officiating crews, which will bring the total of referees to 140. This is a major reason why, the referee union wants more money—more employees, less money to go around. Bottom line, the NFL made 9.3B in revenue last year and if the league pays every zebra $200K, that's less than 1 percent of said revenue. We're not crying thug tears for guys that work once a week and make up to three figures, but damn, let them get a piece of the pie. This is America, ain't it?
Schedule
Compared to the other major sports, NFL referees only call one game a week and are paid less on average. Many of them have second jobs because of this. Shit, Ed Hochuli is a lawyer during the week and probably a professional body builder as well. Many refs are teachers, doctors, farmers, inventors, etc. So, the shield only offers part-time employment on a contract basis. Basically that means, the league can void a ref's contract when the season is over—the same way they do their players. Officials in the NBA, MLB and NHL work more games and therefore, are employed on a full-time basis. This is another major reason why the NFL doesn't want to pay the refs as much as the other leagues, which is understandable.
The NBA pays their officials anywhere between $100K to $300K, NHL officials bank between $72K to $255K (depending on if your a linesman or ref) and MLB umps make $120K to $300K. Not to mention, every official in every league usually flies first-class with all expenses paid. Other than being ridiculed for every call they make, NFL refs have it pretty easy. But, you can't fault them for trying to get that money, the NFL has enough to go around.
Conclusion: Who's Really at Fault
With news that the NFL's lockout of the referees will last until Week 5, it seems like we're going to have to deal with these amateur zebras for a while. Player safety and the integrity of the game are being neglected as well as the fans. The NFL has some huge cojones trotting out a diminished product all the while charging top dollar for tickets and making folks subscribe to premium cable programs to watch their games. Oh, and if you don't have one of those cable programs you can download the app on PS3 for a small fee of $299. We feel for folks that root for garbage teams because blackout rules allow only two to three games to be shown in a given market or in some cases, none. The NFL has eased up this year, but they still should give four games on Sunday afternoons—that's not too much to ask.
If the shield loses this battle, that'll be the second blow to Roger Goodell's ego this season. Just last week, the Saints involved in "Bountygate" won an appeal that allowed them to suit up for the perceivable future. We're aware that both sides are fighting over a lot more money than many could ever think of making on a yearly basis, but what's right is right. The NFLRA needs to stand pat and get that money. That's what the NFL owners would do.
