The XFL is reportedly picking a familiar face to NFL viewers to head its officiating department.
According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk, FOX Sports rules analyst Dean Blandino will serve as the XFL’s head of officiating starting this season. Blandino is a former senior vice president of officiating for the NFL.
The XFL’s officiating mandate, according to the report, is to be “less stall and more ball.” Blandino will be charged with seeing to that when the league starts action on Feb. 8. While nothing is confirmed, it seems likely that Blandino will be able to remain in his current role with FOX, as the XFL will run during the NFL’s offseason.
Blandino is a credible voice, and that can only serve a league like the XFL well as it looks to try to become an offseason NFL alternative. The league still has to deal with some concerns about its salary structure, but this is a move that is at least designed to show how serious they are about being a credible professional football league.
