Report: NFL is moving forward with hiring replacement refs
If these replacement refs are any better than what was a punchline in 2012 we hope to not find out.
SEATTLE, WA - SEPTEMBER 24: Wide receiver Golden Tate #81 of the Seattle Seahawks wrestles with cornerback M. D. Jennings #43 of the Green Bay Packers after making a catch in the end zone to defeat the Green Bay Packers 14-12 on a controversial call by the officials at CenturyLink Field on September 24, 2012 in Seattle, Washington.
(Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images) | Getty Images Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it. And in this case, the NFL has a very short memory. The league is moving forward with hiring replacement referees for the 2026 NFL season, per ESPN’s Kevin Seifert and Kalyn Kahler .
The move is a result of the NFL’s state of negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement with the NFL Referees Association. The current CBA is set to expire May 31. The ESPN report notes the “league office is expecting and preparing for a lockout.
” The NFL may not have a short memory, but fans continue to point to the last time such an initiative came. In the 2012-2013 season, in a situation with the NFLRA not unlike the current one, the NFL hired replacement officials. The results were nothing short of a disaster.