Friday, The Athletic’s Kalyn Kahler shared a feature article on the fragile state of NFL referees. Morale is down, turnover is high, and they’ve been ripe for criticism. It’s an article and idea worth reading, including details over how the league is trying to improve things. But it’s worth writing from a Steelers’ perspective for the story Kahler shared to open the article. Ahead of a 2022 Steelers’ game, Mike Tomlin had a simple question. Who is running the show? The refs couldn’t provide an answer.
“During a pregame meeting in 2022, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin asked the officiating crew a question that had been bugging him.
So, who’s in charge here?
As one crew member recalls, Tomlin asked who in the league office was responsible for answering his questions about officiating decisions and who made the final decisions on replay reviews. “I have no idea,” the official told Tomlin that day. “I can’t tell you who’s the boss or who’s not. It’s been so secretive, and they’re just not very forthcoming.”
Tomlin shrugged. There was a game to play.”
The context of Tomlin’s question isn’t entirely clear. He may have been referencing new league replay review changes. But it was ahead of 2021, not 2022, that the NFL made one of its biggest changes with the adaption of “replay assist,” allowing a crew from New York to quickly watch back plays and make decisions on the fly. Sometimes, that would mean quickly overturning an error by an officials or preventing a team from using a challenge on a clearly missed call.
But it does beg the question of who really is in charge. The refs on the field or the “eye in the sky” from New York? Despite these changes and advancements, there’s still plenty of confusion and controversy each week over calls made and missed. That may continue into 2024 especially regarding the new hip drop ban. Even as the NFL says it’ll largely be punished by fines, not flags, there’s bound to be missteps and mistakes.
Kahler’s article went on toe shift blame from the refs themselves and to the NFL’s environment. Accusations of being understaffed and underpaid. Criticism continues for the league not officially making officials full-time jobs, though some former refs downplay the impact that would have.
Mike Tomlin was harder and more outspoken against refs years ago. In more recent seasons, he’s sidestepped comments about controversial calls, focusing on the team than the zebras. It’s also a smart way to avoid a fine from the NFL.
Football is far from the only sport facing issues. Baseball umpires have come under intense criticism this year for terrible missed calls, especially balls/strikes behind the plate. Disliked veteran ump Angel Hernandez retired mid-season with many believing it was either due to criticism or MLB pressure on him to step down.
No sport is under the microscope like the NFL. It’s one of the few downsides to being the biggest American sport and among the country’s most-watched events. Every mistake is magnified and can’t be hidden to the corners or Reddit or the local news. It’s all front-and-center for everyone to see and scrutinize. The pressure’s on for the league to respond and deliver. Or else morale will continue to fall not just from the refs but the fans who watch.
