Salary of Refs in the NFL | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Salary of Refs in the NFL

JoeFromManyPlaces

JoeFromManyPlaces

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Help me out because I'm curious. Do NFL refs get paid a good salary? And what is keeping them from taking bribes to favor one team in their calling of penalties. It was pretty blatant in the Tennessee loss that the refs were on the Titans side of things. And I'm sure many of you have witnessed it in games throughout the years. One big example is the Patriots. I mean, Tom Brady must pay off the refs because he gets the most retarded calls in favor of him.

Is there a referee union in the NFL? Or do they randomly place refs?
 
i'm not sure. but those are great questions. i am intrigued to know now too :)
 
I am pretty sure the refs are already lawyers and whatnot so they probably are already doing pretty well.

I hate the thought that refs are being paid off, I just think that bad refereeing can be attributed to a possible personal bias, and just bad overall decisions.
 
Its not so much that ref's are taking bribes, but more so as they have their own agenda.. Did anyone actually watch the 60 Minute interview of former Basketball Ref Tim Donahy??

Altho its a different sport, he clearly stated that the league and his crew would specifically target players they didnt like.. I can very much see that happening in the NFL..

The day before the game, Nuggets superstar Allen Iverson was fined $25,000 by the NBA for comments critical of referee Steve Javie, with whom Iverson has long feuded. In the interview, Donaghy said that he and other referees felt the punishment was too light. Before the Nuggets played the Jazz on Jan. 6, 2007, Donaghy said he and the other two officials assigned to the game -- Bernie Fryer and Gary Zielinski -- agreed that they wouldn't give Iverson a fair whistle that night as a way to "teach him a lesson." Donaghy also said that the referees' onsite supervisor that night approved of the crew's treatment of Iverson.
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Now whatever reason was behind some of the calls in Titans game is beyond me, but there had to be some motivation either for the Titans or against the Fins..
 
$25,000 to $70,000 which is MUCH lower than MLB Umpired and NBA Referee's.
 
That sucks. I would think the NFL, with the amount of money and power they have, would be able to hire refs that could be rational and free from personal biases. I mean, they owe it to the fans who pay for EVERYTHING.
 
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How much does an NFL ref make to blow calls?

"The National Football League (NFL) pays referees anywhere from $25,000 to $70,000 per season. When you consider that the league plays 16 games and referees are considered part-time employees, you get a better sense of the disparity. But do not feel so bad for them, not only are there only 16 games in the schedule, they also get one-week intervals." According to AskMen.com

Not bad considering the actual time worked. And that you can get everything wrong and it doesn't matter. Sorta like a weatherman with teacher's hours.
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and listed Feb 2007


Dear Yahoo!:
How much money does an NFL referee make per game?
Brent
Dear Brent:
Many fans would say any amount an NFL referee makes is too much, especially after calls go against their team. The refs would argue that they don't make nearly enough for such a thankless job. On any given Sunday, either side could be right.
You may remember the bitter pay dispute between the NFL and the referee's union back in 2001 when the zebras went on strike. The NFL hired 112 temporary officials, some of whom had worked the most competitive American college football conferences. They were paid $8,000 for a guaranteed four weeks. Up to that time, the then-striking officials were earning from $24,825 to $69,990 per season, depending on experience.

What do they earn now? A knowledgeable (and hopefully trustworthy) contributor at Yahoo! Answers states that NFL referees currently earn between $42,295 and $120,998 per season. That might not sound like much, but remember, the NFL season is only 16 games.

How do those figures compare with the salaries of refs in other sports? According to AskMen.com, Major League baseball umpires earn anywhere from $100,000 to $280,000 per season, plus they get a generous expense account. NHL officials make even more -- from $115,000 to $220,000 per season, based on experience. Probably because they have to know how to skate backwards and stay out of the way of swinging hockey sticks.
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I have always said that if you wanted to fix a game do not payoff the players, payoff the refs. I know a guy that worked for a bookmaker and he agreed with me. I have been figuring:D games for a longtime and I always take in consideration which crew is working a game.
 
NFL refs are human, and as such probably fans of the game themselves. They're also constantly disrespected, shouted at, shoved, etc. It's virtually impossible for them not to have a personal bias. That's ONE motivation for affecting the outcome of a game.

Now the more sinister possibility is when you involve $$$. With NFL having a creative and robust gambling system tied to its games, the opportunity for refs to target the over/under is quite huge. It's virtually untrackable - is there anything stopping their "friend" from betting? You're only depending on their sense of personal integrity, which you might need a microscope to find when big money is involved. And if a ref is trying to affect the over/under or someone's fantasy stats, they might not think that's a huge deal depending on how the game is playing out.

As for teams paying off refs, that's less likely because the chance of it being exposed is too huge and it truly would taint the game. However, in a league which allowed Spygate to continue and then swept it under the rug, anything is possible.
 
oasis said:
NFL refs are human, and as such probably fans of the game themselves. They're also constantly disrespected, shouted at, shoved, etc. It's virtually impossible for them not to have a personal bias. That's ONE motivation for affecting the outcome of a game.

Now the more sinister possibility is when you involve $$$. With NFL having a creative and robust gambling system tied to its games, the opportunity for refs to target the over/under is quite huge. It's virtually untrackable - is there anything stopping their "friend" from betting? You're only depending on their sense of personal integrity, which you might need a microscope to find when big money is involved. And if a ref is trying to affect the over/under or someone's fantasy stats, they might not think that's a huge deal depending on how the game is playing out.

As for teams paying off refs, that's less likely because the chance of it being exposed is too huge and it truly would taint the game. However, in a league which allowed Spygate to continue and then swept it under the rug, anything is possible.
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What are you talking about? Teams are not going to be paying off the refs, bettors, or more likely betting syndicates, are going to be paying off the refs.
 
Whatever ref help Tennessee got is cancelled out by the ref help we got against Tampa. We probably wouldn't have won that game if it wasn't for that forced "fumble". This is reality though: were it not for the interceptions and fumbles, we would have put the Titans away.
 
There is incentive for the refs to make good calls in the NFL. They get graded every week by the NFL on officiating, and the good crews get to officiate the playoffs and superbowl, meaning extra money. Refs that consistently make poor calls can get fired.
 
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