The NFL appears to be on the verge of dodging a major bullet—and for fans who remember the chaos of replacement refs, that's a huge sigh of relief. According to ESPN, the NFL Referees Association has scheduled a ratification vote for Thursday on a new collective bargaining agreement with the league. That's a strong signal that both sides are feeling good about the negotiations, which is excellent news for everyone who loves the game.

Let's be honest, though—there was a small, mischievous part of me that wanted to see it all go sideways again. The 2012 replacement ref debacle, complete with the infamous "Fail Mary" call, was a train wreck that was both painful and strangely fascinating to watch. A league worth billions of dollars, scrambling to find officials who could barely keep up with the speed of the game? It had a certain dark comedy to it.

But that novelty would have worn off fast. And I would have been the first to write about how awful the replacement refs were—especially once they cost my Giants a game. Fortunately, it looks like the NFL will avoid that bullet in the final quarter of negotiations.

The stakes were real. With the current CBA set to expire on May 31, the league had already started recruiting potential replacement refs from the college ranks back in March. Owners even approved rule changes to give more game-day authority to staffers at the officiating command center—but those were contingency plans, contingent on a lockout that now seems unlikely to happen.

A repeat of the Fail Mary in 2026 would have been a disaster for the league, its players, and its fans. We all would have been watching, cringing, and hoping for a miracle. Instead, it looks like we'll get the professionalism and consistency that makes NFL officiating one of the best in sports. And for that, we can all breathe a little easier.