NFL replay review center reportedly ‘can hear the audio’ of TV broadcast while making calls

Discussion about how and when the NFL decides to utilize its replay review center during games has reached a fever pitch this postseason.

In a word, the NFL’s centralized replay review has been administered inconsistently. Sometimes, officials make calls on the field that are changed a minute or two later “after discussion.” Other times, calls that could go one way or the other aren’t reconsidered at all and the game moves forward like nothing happened.

To fans watching at home, there’s no rhyme or reason to when the on-field officials decide to consult the NFL’s replay review center in New York. And when one team finds itself on the bad end of a few calls involving replay assist, or calls that maybe should have involved replay assist, allegations of impropriety run rampant.

The inconsistencies surrounding the centralized review process come at a time when criticism of NFL rules analysts, the former refs that comment on officiating decisions throughout a broadcast, has reached an all-time high. A large swath of viewers believe these analysts have a tendency to simply validate whatever the officials call on the field. That’s perhaps an oversimplification (rules analysts are okay pointing out incorrect calls when replay definitively shows the call in question should be overturned). But it’s fair to say that rules analysts generally back their former colleagues on the field.

So it may be shocking to hear a new report from Puck sports correspondent John Ourand reveals that the officials making decisions in the NFL’s replay center are actually listening in to the television broadcast of a game.

“The referees in New York certainly are watching the networks’ feeds of the telecast,” Ourand reports. “And during the playoffs, when only one game is on, they can hear the audio—so there’s a possibility that they’re being influenced [by the broadcasters]. But these are all experienced refs with their own strong opinions, not to mention access to many more camera angles. So the announcers’ influence in these decisions is negligible at best.”

Maybe so, but the mere fact that these officials are listening to the television broadcast at all is a problem. Like it or not, it’s simply human nature to be influenced in these kinds of circumstances. If officials in the replay center hear Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth, and Terry McAulay discussing a close call in the upcoming Super Bowl, and those same officials know that over 100 million people are hearing their analysis, it becomes incredibly difficult for them to do their job.

If replay officials hear the broadcasters endorsing a call one way or the other, but they disagree with the broadcaster’s assessment, they know that administering the call the other way will cause controversy for the league. The same league that signs their paychecks. It’s not crazy to think officials might have a tendency to choose the path of least resistance, especially if a call could truly go either way.

It seems obvious, but replay officials should not be hearing the television broadcast under any circumstances, and the fact that the league readily admitted they do is shocking. Even if these officials are not influenced at all by the broadcast, the optics of potential foul play should be enough to shutdown the practice.

At the end of the day, there needs to be more transparency about the NFL’s replay review procedures. The status quo diminishes trust in the league. Fans want to get the calls right, sure. But there needs to be formalized rules to achieve that end. Right now, the whole thing seems haphazard, which is unacceptable for the most popular sports league in the country.