NEW YORK — The replacement officials are gone and the NFL is sorry it took so long. Now fans can go back to complaining about the calls made by the regular refs.
The sport’s experiment with replacements ended Thursday night when a veteran crew worked the Browns-Ravens game in Baltimore.
Commissioner Roger Goodell apologized to fans for the anxiety of the last three weeks while denying that using replacement officials increased the chances of flagrant mistakes.
After two days of marathon negotiations — and mounting frustration across the league — the NFL and the officials’ union announced at midnight Eastern Wednesday that a tentative eight-year agreement had been reached to end a lockout that began in June.
The return of the regulars couldn’t come soon enough for many players, coaches and fans.
“Those guys might mess up every now and then, but we can live with that happening with professional guys out there,” Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson said.
Goodell insisted the timing of the deal was not a reaction to the outcry over Monday night’s game, when a missed call cost Green Bay a victory against the Seattle Seahawks. The two sides had been in “intensive negotiations” the last two weeks, he said, although he acknowledged it “may have pushed the parties further along.”
For the Packers, Redskins, Lions and other teams who voiced their displeasure with calls that might have swayed games, the agreement doesn’t change their records.
“Obviously when you go through something like this, it is painful for everybody,” Goodell said. “Most importantly, it is painful for our fans. We are sorry to have to put our fans through that, but it is something that in the short term you sometimes have to do to make sure you get the right kind of deal for the long term and make sure you continue to grow the game.”
The commissioner was watching at home Monday night.
“You never want to see a game end like that,” he said.
But Goodell repeatedly reminded reporters that the regular officials have botched plenty of calls over the years.
The players don’t necessarily disagree on that point.
“Everything is fine until there is a call that decides a game and then people — players, fans, reporters — are going to be complaining again,” Lions receiver Nate Burleson said. “If you thought there was a microscope on the replacement refs, just wait until people start expecting the regular refs to be perfect.”
The new agreement will indeed improve officiating in the future, Goodell asserted, reducing mistakes like those made Monday and making the strains of the last three weeks worthwhile.
Goodell acknowledged “you’re always worried” about the perception of the league.
“Obviously, this has gotten a lot of attention,” he said. “It hasn’t been positive, and it’s something that you have to fight through and get to the long term. ... We always are going to have to work harder to make sure we get people’s trust and confidence in us.”
The agreement hinged on working out pension and retirement benefits for the officials, who are part-time employees of the league. Goodell said the NFL’s offer to increase the deal’s length from five to eight years spurred some concessions from the officials.
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 current defined benefit pension plan will remain in place for current officials through the 2016 season or until the official earns 20 years’ service.
The defined benefit plan will then be frozen. Retirement benefits will be provided for new hires, and for all officials beginning in 2017, through a defined contribution arrangement.
Beginning with the 2013 season, the NFL will have the option to hire a number of officials on a full-time basis to work year round, including on the field. The NFL also will be able to retain additional officials for training and development and can assign those officials to work games. The number of additional officials will be determined by the league.
The tentative deal must be ratified by 51 percent of the union’s 121 members. They plan to vote today and Saturday in Dallas.
Sports, Pages 19 on 09/28/2012