Replacement referees
There was no need for the NFL to quibble with its officials in 2012 over relatively little money as far as the league is concerned. However, when the two sides couldn’t come to an agreement over a new CBA in 2012, the NFL decided it was better to use replacement referees rather than to give the trained refs a slight bump in pay.
The result was disastrous.
Blown calls were the norm, and who can forget the outrageous mistake during the Monday Night Football game featuring the Green Bay Packers at the Seattle Seahawks?
That play, dubbed “Fail Mary,” has gone down as one of the worst calls in NFL history.
Not surprisingly, it only took a few days for the league to get things squared away with the officials after that embarrassment. They were back the next week to officiate games after successfully negotiating a new eight-year CBA that increased their pay incrementally every season.