Roger Goodell offers controversial take on NFL officiating

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell speaks with the media. Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell held his traditional Super Bowl press conference on Wednesday, and made a rather bold claim about the state of NFL officiating.

Goodell was asked about the job referees have been doing this season, and unsurprisingly, Goodell had nothing but praise for the officials. He went a step further, however, by saying that he feels the officiating in the league has never been better.

Roger Goodell on the state of today’s officiating: “I don’t think it’s ever been better.”

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 8, 2023

It goes without saying that a lot of fans would strongly disagree with Goodell’s assessment. They would point to some high-profile misses in the playoffs, including some that seemed pretty obvious when scrutinized more closely.

It may well be that Goodell has a point. The prevalence of replay may magnify more mistakes than ever before. However, it could also be simultaneously true that improvement is still needed, which even the commissioner would not argue with.