New NFL Rumors on Failed Negotiations with Officials amid Possibility of Replacement Refs

While the NFL and the NFL Referees Association have been negotiating the next collective bargaining agreement since the summer of 2024, the two sides reportedly "do not appear any closer on a deal" with the current CBA set to expire in May.

That is what Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports reported Wednesday while also citing a source who "said the referee union refused to engage in ways to improve officiating performance" during negotiations. "While discussions had been scheduled to last for two days, the talks ended after just the morning session of the first day."

Many NFL fans surely remember the failed replacement ref experiment early in the 2012 season, but it could come to that if the two sides don't reach an agreement with the 2026 campaign looming.

Jones reported the league is making "contingency plans" for such a scenario that include a vote from team owners about whether to give more officiating power to the NFL's centralized officiating command center. 

Given the improvements in technology since the 2012 lockout, that could even mean the command center in New York ruling there are penalties on certain plays.

NFL officiating is a part-time position in the current system, and Jones suggested "it's clear" they "are resisting being treated like full-time employees" with the NFL pushing for rewards for high-performing officials that would include increased pay and more opportunities in the spotlight of postseason games.

The NFL is also pushing to "increase training and education for low-performing officials."

NFL EVP Jeff Miller told reporters Wednesday, "We believe that there's an opportunity here to improve our officiating and improve the performance and improve the accountability around it. And we will pay for performance. That's not the issue. And we'll continue to drive that point with our officials. And hopefully they'll be willing to engage with us on those terms increasingly as we get closer to the expiration.

"We want the best officials on the field and we want greater accountability and greater performance and that's what we're going to continue to drive towards."

While the improvements in technology and challenges available to teams could lead to a better experience with replacement refs this time around than in 2012 during the officiating lockout, it is difficult to reflect back on the start of that season and not remember the constant mistakes that overshadowed games.

None was more infamous than the "Fail Mary" that gave the Seattle Seahawks a controversial win over the Green Bay Packers when two different officials made different calls on Russell Wilson's Hail Mary pass that was eventually ruled a touchdown.

If the league and its officials don't make significant progress in the coming weeks and months, another replacement ref experience could be on the way.