Fundamentals of Journalism Blog

In May the National Football League referees’ contracts came to an end. When the referees went on strike, the NFL discovered they had a problem because neither side would be coming to an agreement anytime soon.  After the first few weeks of the regular season fans realized how important the regular referees were to the game of football.

Mike Ehn, Laurens-Marathon athletic director, head high school football coach, and a referee himself, said the replacement referees didn’t fail like most fans thought. “I don’t think the replacement refs failed. They were put into a situation where they did not have the experience and the speed of the game was just too fast for them.”

If the replacement referees did not fail, what do people consider a good referee to be? Luke Arnts, a die-hard Minnesota Vikings fan, said “A good referee is some who makes decisions quickly without hesitation.  A good ref needs experience in the league before he has seen and made all the calls.”

According to the book, Psychology of refereeing, “a referee must commit to four responsibilities. One, to see to it that the sporting event takes place in accordance with the rules of the game. Two, to intervene as little as possible and not make themselves the center of attention. Three, to establish and maintain a good atmosphere so as to make the event as enjoyable as possible.  And four, to show an interest in the players.”

On Monday night, September 24, the Green Bay Packers played the Seattle Seahawks, and as time expired off the clock, quarterback Russell Wilson threw a hail Mary and Green Bay safety M.D. Jennings and Seahawk receiver Golden Tate went up and both came down with the ball.  One referee ruled the play as an interception as the other ref ruled it a touchdown, which ended up being the call.

Tuesday, talk began the NFL and the referees could be coming to an agreement after Monday night’s game. By Thursday September 27, the regular referees were back on the field for the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens game.

It wasn’t an easy process to figure out how to get the referees back.  Of course most of the controversy dealt with money.  According to an article on ESPN, “The tentative pact calls for their salaries to increase from an average of $149,000 a year in 2011 to $173,000 in 2013, rising to $205,000 by 2019.”  The article went on to say, “Retirement benefits will be provided for new hires and for all officials beginning in 2017 through a defined contribution arrangement.”

As of next season, the league has the option of being able to hire referees to work all year compared to right now only working part time.

With all the scrutiny on how bad the replacement refs were it brings up a good question that wasn’t talked about much.  Obviously, there were differences between the regular refs and the replacements, but what were they exactly?

Ehn said, “I think the real referees have the experience and knowledge and that is why they were hired. Because they are best at what they do.”