The NFL is floating the idea of using replacement referees with union talks stalling — again.
ESPN reported Wednesday that the league is “laying groundwork” to hire replacement officials if it and the NFL Referees Association can’t come to a new collective bargaining agreement before the 2026 season.
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The NFL is looking for “about 150 mostly small college” referees to begin onboarding as soon as this spring, per the outlet.
Referee Brad Rogers calls a penalty during an NFL football game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the San Francisco 49ers at Raymond James Stadium on October 12, 2025 in Tampa, Florida. Getty Images
“Absent a CBA agreement, they would continue training through the summer and make visits to training camps before the regular season begins,” the report read.
The news brings back bad memories of the disastrous referee lockout in 2012, when the league used low-level college, minor league and Arena League officials during the first three weeks of the regular season, to the dismay of players, coaches and fans alike.
That impasse ended after the infamous “Fail Mary,” when two replacement referees simultaneously called a game-ending pass by the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson to Golden Tate a touchdown and touchback.
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NFLRA executive director Scott Green is stunned the league is looking to wade back into those waters.
The infamous “Fail Mary” during Week 3 of the NFL season. Getty Images
“Frankly,” Green told ESPN, “I’m surprised they would even consider it after 2012.”
The NFL is said to be looking to “improve the performance of our game officials, increase accountability, and ensure that the highest-performing officials are officiating our highest profile games,” according to a memo released last year.
The CBA is set to expire at the end of May.
Earlier this month, ESPN reported that “frustration [was] mounting” among NFL owners about talks with the referees union.
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