Barstool boss Dave Portnoy has gone on a massive tirade against the NFL with him picking apart the officiating from the four Divisional playoff games on Saturday and Sunday.
Portnoy’s attack went so far that he suggested the NFL needed a massive rule change – to hire officials as full-time league employees.
NFL referees can reportedly earn around $200,000 per season, but are not considered full-time employees of the league, meaning they don’t have to cover health insurance and other measures for those in the zebra stripes.
The officials typically have other jobs despite their lucrative salaries. Famed referee Ed Hochuli was a lawyer when not on the gridiron.
Fans were particularly upset with the officials in the Kansas City Chiefs’ win over the Houston Texans, believing the officials tilted the game toward Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes and their team. Portnoy agreed.
‘The officiating this weekend was some of the worst officiating I’ve ever seen in the NFL,’ Portnoy said. ‘The personal fouls, the holding they called. These guys are dictating the game. And I do not understand. Get full-time officials!’
How is a league worth billions of dollars too poor to have full time officials? @TheShredLine pic.twitter.com/XWqaHeLcKd
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) January 20, 2025
‘When I have to start reading, it’s bad news. That means I’m upset and I’m researching. I started reading like, “Why doesn’t the NFL have full-time officials?” And you know what the answer is 100 out of 100 times everywhere? Too expensive for the league.’
‘Too expensive for the billion-dollar corporation making money hand over fist. You can’t afford full-time officials? If you have younger guys who are working full-time at their craft 24-7 and they screw up, I can live with it. But when you have substitute teachers, part-time accountants, and these guys are deciding the biggest league in the world? That makes no sense to me at all.’
Regardless of the officiating, the NFL has two dynamite matchups in its conference-championship slate on Sunday.
The Chiefs will take part in their seventh-straight AFC title game against the only team to beat them this year at full strength, the Buffalo Bills.
A heated divisional matchup is the NFC title game as the Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles meet in a rubber match with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.
With only three NFL games left until next season, everyone will be under a severe microscope from here on out, including the referees.
