The National Football League and the NFL Referees Association have signed a new collective bargaining agreement. This deal aims to improve the quality of officiating by increasing competition and providing better training.

美國國家美式足球聯盟 (NFL) 與 NFL 裁判協會簽署了一份新的集體協商協議。此協議旨在透過增加競爭並提供更好的訓練，來提升裁判的質素。

The main part of the agreement is the creation of a practice squad with up to 12 officials. These officials will work with specific crews to provide immediate replacements if someone is injured or performs poorly. Some of these roles will be filled by college officials who move to the professional level after their college seasons. Ramon George, VP of officiating training and development, emphasized that this change will create a more competitive environment for officials at all levels.

協議的核心在於建立一個最多 12 人的練習小隊。這些裁判將與特定組員合作，以便在有人受傷或表現不佳時提供立即的替代方案。部分職位將由大學裁判填補，他們會在大學賽季結束後進入職業等級。裁判訓練與發展副總裁 Ramon George 強調，此舉將為所有等級的裁判創造一個更具競爭力的環境。

Furthermore, the league has changed the 'dark period,' which is the traditional offseason. This period now starts on May 1 instead of May 15. For officials with the lowest performance ratings, the offseason may be shorter or removed entirely to allow for mandatory training. To support these changes, the league will double its number of coach coordinators from eight to sixteen over the next two years. Additionally, the agreement removes the rule that officials need two years of experience to work in the playoffs, meaning high-performing officials can now be chosen regardless of how long they have been in the league.

此外，聯盟更改了所謂的「暗期」，即傳統的休賽季。這段期間現在從 5 月 1 日開始，而非 5 月 15 日。對於表現評分最低的裁判，休賽季可能會縮短或完全取消，以進行強制性訓練。為了支持這些變革，聯盟將在未來兩年內將教練協調員的人數從 8 人增加到 16 人。此外，協議取消了裁判需要兩年經驗才能執法季後賽的規定，這意味著表現優秀的裁判現在無論入行多久，都可以被選中。

However, some people within the organization remain skeptical. Some critics argue that the practice squad and extra training are only minor changes to old ideas. They pointed out that the league failed to implement similar programs promised in the 2019 agreement. Moreover, some suggest that the real problem is the contradictory feedback officials receive from the league office, rather than a lack of training. There is also a concern that too much pressure to perform could cause anxiety and actually make officiating worse on the field.

然而，組織內部仍有人持懷疑態度。一些批評者認為，練習小隊和額外訓練僅是對舊想法的微小變動。他們指出，聯盟未能執行 2019 年協議中承諾的類似計畫。此外，有人建議真正的問題在於裁判從聯盟辦公室收到的反饋自相矛盾，而非缺乏訓練。同時也有人擔心，過大的表現壓力可能會導致焦慮，反而使場上的裁判表現惡化。

The new agreement creates a stricter, performance-based system for officials, but its success depends on whether the league can actually carry out these training plans.

新協議為裁判建立了一個更嚴格、以表現為基礎的制度，但其成功與否取決於聯盟是否能真正執行這些訓練計畫。