It’s All Fun and Games Until …

  

Admit it, when it comes to the NFL’s replacement officials, you probably fall into one of four categories:

• You mock them, laughing hysterically at some of the boneheaded calls from the preseason (that’s a touchback … the 4-yard line!).  
• You are freaked out, fearing the day they blow a big, game-changing call against your favorite team.
• You, like many NFL fans, think you could do a better job. Of course, you felt that way with the “real” refs, too. (One inexplicable call a game isn’t looking so bad in comparison, huh?)
• Your only concern is how this is going to affect your fantasy team.

But what happens when one of the less-experienced officials allows an illegal, season-ending hit on Dez Bryant, Randy Moss, Larry Fitzgerald or another defenseless receiver?

How will you feel, Ravens or Jets fans, when Steelers linebacker James Harrison comes flying, unimpeded, at Joe Flacco or Mark Sanchez with a helmet-first tackle that knocks the air out of your QB but doesn’t draw a flag?

And Vikings fans, how will you feel when AP’s banged-up knee is reinjured because less-experienced officials let a gang-tackle continue long after the play should have been blown dead?

While many fans have found preseason officiating alternately funny and frustrating, what really concerns me is the safety factor.  In a league where two of its biggest headlines—touchdowns and concussions—often appear in the same news stories, the NFL needs to avoid a situation where its bone headedness could have a negative impact on the health of its players.

Over the past decade, the NFL has created a lot of good will in making its product safer for its players. What’s more, many of the league’s more experienced officials have been heavily involved in the process and can be partly credited with keeping the NFL’s biggest asset—its players—safe. It is a goal in which both sides are heavily invested.

While it has become sport to make fun of the replacement officials, we must remember two important things: First, the replacements are doing the best they can, considering the circumstances. In most cases, officials start out at a lower level, moving up and gaining experience along the way. But these people took an express train to the NFL, bypassing a handful of stops. Can you imagine getting a job in the mailroom one day and then getting an opportunity to step in as president a short time later? There would be a bit of a learning curve, to say the least. These officials did more than just yell at the TV from the couch, like most fans do. They were offered a chance of a lifetime, and they took it. 

Secondly, let’s be clear—this is a mistake on the NFL’s part (i.e., the league should be the butt of the jokes, not the officials). If the underlying issue is partly about money, the NFL has the most to lose. In the long run, ensuring the safety of the game is worth far more than the NFL could ever concede to the referee’s union.