Commissioner Roger Goodell Defends ‘Incredible’ NFL Referees Ahead of Super Bowl

NFL referees have been subject to much criticism in recent seasons. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Super Bowl is just about here, which means it’s time for Roger Goodell’s annual state of the union press conference about all matters surrounding football and the NFL.

The longtime commissioner meets annually with gathered Super Bowl media ahead of the big game as one of his few regular availabilities throughout the calendar year. Reporters usually use this opportunity to pose pressing questions to Goodell about the state of the league and the game itself. This year’s press conference was scheduled for Monday ahead of Super Bowl LX between the Patriots and Seahawks. With it came an opportunity for Goodell to defend NFL referees.

The commissioner was asked about the state of officiating in today’s NFL. He offered an impassioned defense to begin his answer, praising refs as “incredible” and stating he’s “amazed” by the quality of their work.

“I’m so amazed at how good our officials are,” Goodell said. “We spend time all week looking at various angles and still debating it a week later. These guys have to make a split-second decision. The men and women on our field are incredible. I think that they’ve proven over and over again they’re really wonderful at what they do.”

The commissioner was willing to acknowledge the difficulty of their job, however, and made his case to allow more use of technology to correct whatever errors might occur as a result.

“On the other hand, it’s a difficult sport to officiate. It’s fast. It’s quick. We have to be able to use technology, in my view, to try to prevent the obvious errors.”

Roger Goodell on the state of NFL officiating:

“I’m so amazed at how good our officials are.” 😬
pic.twitter.com/CQbBgXhfbH

— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) February 2, 2026

It is the expected stance for the head of the NFL to take. It’s also one most fans would disagree with.

Regardless of one’s opinion on the general state of officiating in the NFL, it’s impossible to deny that wrong calls have become a weekly talking point in today’s league. Even this year’s incredible slate of playoff games were overshadowed by officiating controversy to some degree. The Brandin Cooks catch-interception debate raged for weeks after the Bills lost to the Broncos in the divisional round, for example. Then there was the bizarre backwards pass snafu during the Patriots-Broncos AFC championship game that confused everybody watching.

It’s a tough job, no doubt about it. But debate will continue to rage, even with Goodell’s public backing here. Based on how this season played out it’s a solid bet the Super Bowl will bring more controversy on this front, too.

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