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09/09/2001 "NFL season begins with replacement refs"
The NFL football season will begin in a few moments. On the FOX pregrame show I hear Chris Collinsworth make a statement about the NFL officials, who are on strike, by saying something like, "Put your hankies back in your pockets and get back on the field".
That's the sentiment of most fans and media people who enjoy the National Football League. I'm in the minority. The league, players, owners, and TV networks have earned immense wealth over the past 10-15 years from pro football, but the NFL officials have not received much of a pay increase over that same period.
Granted, the referees only work once a week and most have lucrative Monday-Friday, 9-5 jobs. It's my opinion the refs should get a pay increase; it will have an insignificant affect on the NFL's bottom line. The impact on each game, however, by the replacement officials could cause a team to not qualify for the playoffs.
The fans are against the ref's strike. Let's see what the consensus is in a few weeks. It appears the replacement refs will work at least the first four games of the season.
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