Five on-field NFL officials, two replay officials opt out of season, source says

By
KEVIN SEIFERT via <a href="http://espn.go.com/" title="ESPN" class="espn_sc_byline">ESPN </a>
via
August 14, 2020, 11:09 AM ET
1 min read

Five NFL game officials and two replay officials have opted out of the 2020 season because of the coronavirus pandemic, a source said Friday morning.

The voluntary decisions, in conjunction with an agreement reached last week between the league and the NFL Referees Association, puts the league's roster of officials at 114.

That's enough to fully staff every NFL game this season, but the league is expected to add perhaps a half-dozen more officials in the coming weeks to ensure it has enough personnel to cover for potential illnesses and/or quarantines over the next six months.

The identities of those who opted out were not immediately available. Game officials who opted out will receive a $30,000 stipend and job guarantees for the 2021 season.