Revisiting the 2012 NFL replacement officials, from lockout to 'Fail Mary'
Revisiting the 2012 NFL replacement officials, from lockout to 'Fail Mary'
Jacob Camenker, USA TODAYThu, April 2, 2026 at 10:04 AM UTC
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The 2026 NFL season is still several months away, but the league already has a major storyline percolating ahead of it.
The NFL and the NFL Referees Association (NFLRA) are in the midst of a labor dispute. The current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the two parties is set to expire on May 31, and discussions of a new CBA between them have thus far been fruitless.
Most recently, a planned, two-day negotiation session between the NFL and the NFLRA ended before lunch on its first day. During the brief summit, the NFL rejected the union's counterproposal, as the NFLRA's executive director Scott Green told USA TODAY Sports' Jarrett Bell.
"We asked them to give us a response and they refused," Green wrote in a text message.
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With the two parties at an impasse, the NFL is preparing to potentially lock out the officials ahead of the league's 2026 season. If that happens, the NFL will likely begin the process of hiring replacement officials for the upcoming campaign, an eventuality the league began planning for with one of its approved rule changes at the 2026 NFL annual meeting.
The NFL has hired replacement officials before. They were first employed for Week 1 of the 2001 campaign and more recently worked the first three weeks of the 2012 NFL season, a period during which their performance received heavy scrutiny from NFL fans, players and coaches alike.
Here's a look back at the 2012 NFL replacement officials and how that referee lockout unfolded.
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Revisiting the 2012 NFL referee lockoutThe lockout begins
The NFL's 2012 officiating lockout began in June. It came after talks of a CBA extension between the two parties broke down, with the NFL citing the NFLRA had "made economic demands totaling millions of additional dollars that they had agreed to drop at earlier sessions," per The .
On June 4, the NFL announced it would begin training replacement officials "to ensure that there is no disruption to NFL games this season."
"Our goal is to maintain the highest quality of officiating for our teams, players, and fans, including proper enforcement of the playing rules and efficient management of our games," the NFL said in a statement at the time.
The NFL was adamant its search – which targeted retired college referees among others who would be qualified to officiate professional games – would create a quality pool of officials for the 2012 NFL season.
"The officials we are hiring are professionals who officiate games at a high level and have backgrounds similar to current NFL officials," league spokesman Greg Aiello said. "We have every confidence that the officials who we bring on will do a fully credible job, and will manage our games efficiently and effectively enforce the playing rules."
Meanwhile, the NFLRA referred to those the NFL was looking to hire as "amateur officials."
Talks between the NFL and NFLRA remained at a standstill as the league trained its replacement officials. And midway through the summer, the NFLRA accused the league of planning to lock them out for the season.
"Lockout seems to be their negotiating strategy with everyone," then-NFL referee and NFLRA president Scott Green said, referencing the 2011 NFL player lockout. "We don't want to be locked out. We want to get back to the table and get this resolved."
But the two parties remained at an impasse ahead of the season. As such, the league announced it would open the 2012 season with the replacements in place and that it would continue to use them "as much of the regular season as necessary."
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell opined the replacement officials would do "a very credible job," per ESPN. Meanwhile, NFLRA spokesman Michael Arnold bemoaned the negative impact the new officials could have on the safety and integrity of the NFL.
"The league has placed a lot of emphasis on player health and safety in the last few years and we do feel we are an integral part of that," Arnold said. "We think it is unfortunate and we really don't understand why the league is willing to risk playing safety and the integrity of the game by utilizing amateur officials."
Issues with replacement officials
From the jump, the NFL's replacement officials struggled. There were countless questionable calls from each officiating crew and numerous incidences of administrative issues within the crews, which slowed down games and created confusion for players, fans and coaches alike.
Here are some of the most notable mistakes by the replacement officials from their three-week reign in 2012.
Week 1
The replacement officials incorrectly gave the Seattle Seahawks an extra timeout near the end of their 20-16 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. This was due to confusion about whether Seattle should be charged a timeout for an injury stoppage following an incomplete pass, according to referee Bruce Hermansen, who acknowledged the error after the game.
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In the Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles game, Michael Vick was ruled to have recovered his own fumble after a 9-yard scramble on Philadelphia's game-winning drive. Browns coach Pat Shurmur attempted to challenge the play but was told it was "not challengeable" by referee Ken Roan, but not until the league had already consulted with the replay booth for several minutes.
Week 2
The replacement officials lost control of several games in Week 2, with the most notable being the "Monday Night Football" clash between the Denver Broncos and Atlanta Falcons.
Following a Knowshon Moreno fumble at the end of the first quarter, a brawl broke out between the Broncos and Falcons. Several skirmishes and shouting matches occurred during the minute-long delay of action, and an official was inadvertently hit by Broncos offensive tackle Orlando Franklin as they tried to take control of the situation.
No players were ejected as a result of the brawl, and only one – Atlanta's Ray Edwards – was ultimately penalized. But then-ESPN color commentator Jon Gruden chided the officials for their inability to rein in the two teams as they scrapped.
"That one got out of hand," Gruden said. "That could have gotten really ugly."
Week 3
The replacement officials' final week featured a plethora of egregious calls. That included:
The San Francisco 49ers were granted two challenges against the Minnesota Vikings despite being out of timeouts.
Officials incorrectly assessed a 15-yard personal foul penalty against the Detroit Lions' Stephen Tulloch as a 27-yarder after confusing whether the Tennessee Titans were on their own 44-yard line or Detroit's.
Officials failed to penalize Pittsburgh Steelers safety Ryan Mundy for a helmet-to-helmet hit that knocked Oakland Raiders receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey unconscious and caused him to be hospitalized.
Additionally, the final play of the Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots "Sunday Night Football" game generated controversy. Officials ruled that Justin Tucker had made a 27-yard field goal that came dangerously close to sailing outside the right upright.
The Patriots were irate, as they appeared to believe Tucker's kick was wide right. Bill Belichick was seen grabbing one of the officials after the game as he tried to get them to review the call – which was, by rule, unreviewable. Belichick was fined $50,000 for making contact with the official.
The 'Fail Mary'
As controversial as the finish of the Ravens vs. Patriots game was, the finish of Week 3's "Monday Night Football" game was the worst of the brief replacement official era.
The Seattle Seahawks were hosting the Green Bay Packers and were trailing 12-7 with eight seconds left in regulation when Russell Wilson received a snap on Green Bay's 24-yard line. The then-rookie quarterback scrambled around before lofting a pass from the 40-yard line in the direction of Golden Tate.
Tate and Packers defensive back M.D. Jennings both elevated in an effort to catch the pass. It appeared Jennings possessed the ball first, but Tate was able to subsequently get his hands on it as they came to the ground.
The officials in the end-zone had conflicting rulings. One signaled touchdown while the other signaled time had run out, though no interception signal was clearly made. After discussion, the officials ruled the play a touchdown as a result of a simultaneous catch. They then reviewed the play, but referee Wayne Elliott ruled there was not sufficient evidence to overturn the call on the field.
Backlash over the call was swift, with fans, media analysts and players all expressing they believed the officials had gotten the play – which was dubbed the "Fail Mary" – wrong. That included Packers offensive lineman T.J. Lang – who said to "fine me and use the money to pay the regular refs" – and Jennings, who said he was "shocked" by the ruling.
Then-Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy perhaps summed up the sentiment around the play best, without directly criticizing the officials.
"Don't ask me a question about the officials," McCarthy told reporters. "I've never seen anything like that in all my years in football.
"I know it's been a wild weekend in the NFL and I guess we're part of it now."
The referee lockout ends
A few days after the "Fail Mary" came to be, the NFL announced it had reached an agreement with the NFLRA on a new CBA.
The agreement was officially announced Sept. 28, when Goodell penned an open letter to NFL fans apologizing for the labor negotiations impacting the league's on-field product.
"I believe in accountability, not excuses. And I regret we were not able to secure an agreement sooner in the process and avoid the unfortunate distractions to the game," Goodell wrote. "You deserve better."
The NFL lifted its lockout ahead of the Week 4 "Thursday Night Football" game between the Ravens and Browns. Gene Steratore's crew was tapped to work the game in Baltimore and received a standing ovation from the crowd when performing the pregame coin toss.
"Good evening, men," Steratore said over his microphone at the stadium, per ESPN. "It's good to be back."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2012 NFL replacement referee timeline, from lockout to 'Fail Mary'
Source: “AOL Sports”
