Every single season, it seems like there are a handful of plays in almost every NFL game where the questions of personal bias or poor calling on the part of the officiating crew are called into question by fans and organizations league-wide.
There have been major blunders that will forever live on in every football fan's memory such as the infamous pass interference no call on the LA Rams vs. the Saints in the 2018 NFC Championship game (a poor call that probably still haunts Broncos current Head Coach Sean Payton to this day), and the Music City Miracle during the AFC Wild Card game between the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans on January 8, 2000 (A game that former Broncos Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips likely still has nightmares about).
But there have also been many moments, even in recent memory, in which it just seems that the officiating, or lack thereof (whether obvious or slight), in certain games has favored one team or player more than another. In these moments, fans and organizations NFL-wide have perpetuated an onslaught of appeals for change on social media. Broncos Fans were no exception.
Broncos have been hurt badly by horrendous officiating in recent years
One major issue with such officiating has seemed to be the lack of consequences and accountability on the officials by the league when such blunders and biases have happened. However, on Wednesday, April 9th, 2025, a glimmer of such accountability surfaced.
According to an article published by long-time CBS Sports reporter Jeff Kerr, three NFL Referees have been fired and demoted to the college level of officiating in the Power Conferences.
In a related article published at FootballZebras.com, the decision to terminate these three referees was made by Ramon George, Vice President of NFL Officiating, who enters his second season in the position. A source in that article reported that George is putting great emphasis on accountability and is using collected data as a tool to advance the accountability and improvement of NFL officiating.
Another source to the article who chose to remain anonymous was quoted saying;
"The culture is is changing, it’s changing rapidly. It’s changing into a competitive environment where everybody’s equal. There are no favorites. There’s no favoritism. There’s none of that; it’s all about performance."Anonymous
Regardless of the reasons that these particular officials have been relegated as opposed to others, this move by the NFL front office shows that an attempt to improve one of the most important and often one of the most controversial areas of professional football is being made. This should be encouraging to Broncos Country and NFL Fans alike.