With all the excitement of the NFL season opener with the defending Super Bowl champions the New York Giants beginning their season against the Dallas Cowboys, we almost forgot about the debut of the NFL's replacement officials.
The NFL and its officials are currently in a labor dispute over salary and retirement benefits, amongst other things. The two sides have yet to reach a settlement so the officials followed an increasing trend in the NFL and began a holdout.
In last nights season opener, only one official had worked Division I NCAA games, while the rest had experience at lower levels of football. However, no official had more than nine years experience.
In the end, head official Jim Core and his seven-man team consisting of Bob Shoulders, Greg Maxwell, Joshua Thurow, Thaddious Foster, Brian Stropolo, and Larry Babcock were able to avoid making headlines last night.
Core was able to announce penalties all night without stumbling through his words when addressing the crowd. He also made the right call when the Cowboys' Jason Hatcher got his hands into the neck area of Eli Manning, forcing him to the ground after he had released the ball.
Considering everything that could have gone wrong, the replacement officials handled their business professionally and without grave error. The officials did not play a major role in the outcome of the game, which is always priority number one for any official.
This is only one game though, and there are many more blunders that await games scheduled for Sunday, but for now, the replacement officials have held their own.
Even so, hopefully a deal with the NFL officials reach a conclusion soon so there will be guaranteed more consistency throughout the year.
