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6h ago

NFL Lays Out Performance-Based Overhaul in Talks With Officials as CBA Nears Expiration

A Dec. 30 bargaining session follows a memo to teams noting stalled talks over performance-linked pay.

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 23: Referee Ron Torbert during a game between the Tennessee Titans and the Seattle Seahawks at Nissan Stadium on November 23, 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee. The Seahawks defeated the Titans 30-24. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
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Overview

  • The current agreement with the NFL Referees Association expires May 31, 2026, marking this season as the final year under existing terms, with the next bargaining session set for Dec. 30.
  • In a memo to clubs, NFL executive Troy Vincent and general counsel Larry Ferazani said efforts to extend the deal since summer 2024 have not produced an agreement.
  • The league is pushing to tie compensation and postseason assignments to officiating evaluations so that top-graded officials work the highest-profile games.
  • Priorities also include more practice reps, a longer probationary period with flexibility to remove underperformers, shortening the post‑Super Bowl contact blackout, and expanding the officials pool into a practice-squad model.
  • Coverage highlights the 2012 lockout and three weeks of replacement officials, including the 'Fail Mary,' as the key precedent referenced in the current leverage calculus.