Regular refs to work Thursday game after agreement. Barry Wilner, Boston.com
The NFL’s regular officiating crews are back. Their return couldn’t have come soon enough for many players, coaches and fans.
After two days of marathon negotiations — and mounting frustration throughout the league — the NFL and the officials’ union announced at midnight Thursday that a tentative eight-year agreement had been reached to end a lockout that began in June.
I will admit to being surprised by the sense of urgency the league displayed in getting this done. Yes, Monday night's game was a travesty, and people were angry, but now all that's gone and the NFL becomes about football again and...well, fans who tune out when things are on the skids for their team are now out of excuses and are going to start tuning out.
This had to have been a case where public pressure (or perceived public pressure) drove negotiations. Of course, the replacement (I refuse to call them scabs, that's unprofessional) referees were becoming a distraction bigger than the game. Perhaps a majority of the owners finally came to the conclusion that their most important product should be game being played on the field?
One can only hope.
Any way, welcome back to the "regular" referees, you replacement crews can now go back to having your Sunday afternoon's off, and watching the NFL like the rest of us.
