Sources: NFL assigns ref crews as CBA progresses
Roger Goodell joins "NFL Countdown" and says "we all want to improve officiating." (0:42) The NFL distributed crew assignments to referees this week amid indications of continued progress toward a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement with the NFL Referees Association, sources told ESPN. The sides have been negotiating for nearly two years but reached an impasse this spring, prompting the league office to begin laying the groundwork for using replacement officials. At their annual meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, owners passed a series of rule changes to give league staff in New York City broad authority to help officiate games via video feeds if replacement officials were used in games.
A meeting earlier this month that included multiple owners, including the Dallas Cowboys ' Jerry Jones, produced what a league source said was "progress." Sources said this week that momentum has continued to build toward an agreement. Perry Fewell, the league's senior vice president of officiating, told teams in a memo before the NFL draft that the league had begun conducting medical examinations and performing vetting on college officials who were willing to step in as NFL replacements if needed. Those measures include increasing the probationary period for new officials from three to five years, shortening the "dead period" during the offseason to allow for more training and reducing the seniority-based approach to covering playoff games.
Analysis: Why This Matters
Fans tracking Sources NFL will want to follow this closely; even off-field news often shapes on-field outcomes.
Key Takeaways
- Fewell also wrote that those replacements could begin staffing OTAs and minicamps as early as June 1.
- At the time the talks stalemated this spring, the NFL had offered the NFLRA a six-year deal that averaged annual raises of 6.45%, sources said.
- The league also pushed the NFLRA to allow several fundamental changes to officials' job structure, which the NFLRA largely resisted early in talks.
Expect more reactions from coaches, players, and analysts as the story unfolds.
Source: ESPN Sports