NFL to teams: Stop berating replacement refs

Head Coach John Fox of the Denver Broncos yells at back judge Terrence Miles (111) during their game against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome on September 17, 2012 in Atlanta, Georgia. / Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

(CBS/AP) NEW YORK - The NFL has warned teams that it won't tolerate confrontational behavior toward replacement officials.

NFL.com said on Thursday night that senior league officials called owners, general managers and coaches from all 32 teams to tell them that respect for the game demands better on-field behavior.

NFL executive vice president Ray Anderson singled out Monday night's game for having examples of "unacceptable behavior."

He didn't specify which incidents in the Atlanta Falcons' victory over Denver crossed the line, but Broncos coach John Fox and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio both had heated arguments with officials.

Anderson said, "We're not going to tolerate it."

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the last time the NFL issued such a stern league-wide warning during the season was in October 2010 when there was a spate of helmet-to-helmet hits on unsuspecting receivers.

While outrage among players, coaches and fans grows over questionable calls and non-calls by the replacement officials, one sports business expert told CBSNews.com that the NFL hasn't exactly suffered yet.

"It's certainly not keeping anyone from watching the games," said Scott Minto, the director of San Diego State University's Sports Business MBA program. "I think we haven't seen anything yet that's so egregious that people will start to turn away."

However, Minto cautioned that one of the criticisms of the replacements - that they are letting players get away with rough play and borderline cheap shots - has the potential to be a serious problem for the league.

Minto said if a player were to get injured due to lax officiating, then the NFL "is going to have a real black eye on their hands."

Eagles running back LeSean McCoy said on Monday that he thought the replacement officials were being intimidated by the players.

"During the game, they made like a bad call or something, the ref, and I see (Ravens linebacker) Ray Lewis like pump his chest up, trying to scare him. Don't you know [the ref] started stuttering? I'm like 'what's this?!'"

Anderson said flags, fines and suspensions are possible for coaches or players who crossed the line.

The NFL locked out the regular officials in June and contract negotiations have broken down.

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NFL: Week 2

The Monday night game, typically a showcase for the NFL, turned into something of a sideshow, explained CBS News' Jeff Glor, in a report that aired Thursday on "CBS This Morning."

What NFL replacement ref mistakes mean for lockout, league

Jerry Markbriet spent 23 years officiating in the NFL and spoke out about the recent events. He said, "It's a crime to let them officiate these games. The league says they are a doing a good job and they'll get better every week. My personal opinion is they will not get better -- every week they'll get worse."

On Monday, two weeks into the NFL's referee lockout, replacement officials were marking off obviously incorrect yardage, missing turnovers, and causing extreme delays.

That, after a slew of mishaps on Sunday: the clock running at the wrong time in a Bengals-Browns game, phantom pass interferences in a Steelers-Jets game, and one official pulled from a game at the last minute when it was discovered he was a New Orleans Saints fan about to referee a Saints game.

The league released a statement to CBS News saying: "Officiating is never perfect. The current officials have made great strides and are performing admirably under unprecedented scrutiny and great pressure."

[wolfmagic2012]

Teams to NFL: Stop employing Replacement Refs and get the deal done with the NFLRA, or pay the price in the fututre for the negligent seeds you are sowing, which perhaps next year, will grow into a strike by the NFLPA. The players and fans know without a doubt the NFL is full of bull in their union-busting-emasculation effort toward the NFLRA. NFL Hypocrites! You are endangering the health of NFL players, as well as the outcome of NFL games.

[audemus]

It's about time the NFL started standing up for these guys !!!!!! They are truly doing the best job they know how, and given time they WILL improve....just like anybody else in a new challenge. They DID NOT start this mess.

Coaches and players tend to be somewhat hypocritical when it comes to this issue, because even when the "regular" refs were in there, they complained about them too....SHUT-UP AND PLAY SOME FOOTBALL !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[the_egret]

Time to address the NFL's monopoly. Similarly the NCAA. Both organizations have gotten way to big for their britches. It's all about $$. If Americans want to watch gladiators, fine. But the process of funneling athletes from High School thru College to Pro via recruitment is hugely abused and doesn't give a rip if promising athletes even finish school.

[forumcomments]

The replacement officals have been more than adequate. Remember the quality issues with refs last year? There are no more wrong plays so far than any other year.

[Scimajor]

Maybe it's time sports got back to being about the game itself rather than being about big businesses and players making millions of dollars.

[thechooch1]

And owners making multi-millions and refs making squat.

[MisterSquash]

Jon Fox is a slime awful coach

[lindseyrae7]

I'm assuming you're not a Broncos fan? He's a great coach.

[Paul_I]

The NFL has a reputation for providing football with a high level of integrity and fairness in the games. The replacement officials do not perform anywhere close to the capabilities of the regular officials. This compromises the integrity and fairness of the games. Given the number of times the replacement officials demonstrably and often by their own admission make incorrect calls, the NFL needs to do something before football as we know it gets relegated to the level of the WWF.

[lesserof2evil]

But yet the consumers continue to pay for an inferior product. So why should the NFL do any thing different?

[travelers345]

The degree to which Boomer Esiason was berating the replacement refs during the Monday Night football game was extremely unprofessional. They should have taken him off of the game at halftime.

[mecury69]

Agree. Back off the refs. They are doing the best they can.

Berating players on the sideline is typically not acceptable either so why should this?

[fredm6900]

This is a game, it's all what it is!