New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel would like to see the NFL make a notable change to its officiating for the 2026 season.
While at the NFL Scouting Combine this week, Vrabel pointed out that prime-time games receive more attention from the league's officiating office in New York than an early Sunday afternoon game.
Vrabel is hoping the NFL will have a better process for replay reviews by the time Week 1 of the 2026 season begins.
"We need to evaluate staffing at that level to make sure every game is treated the same, whether it’s the prime-time game on Sunday night, the prime-time game on Monday or Thursday or whether it’s those 1 o’clock games that is the lifeblood of our league," Vrabel said, via Pro Football Talk. "So I think if we need to figure out staffing issues that need to be taken care of so those things are looked at and we’re not letting anything slip. We need to be really good in replay. There’s going to be mistakes on the field, just like there’s mistakes in execution by the players, mistakes by the coaches, there’s going to be mistakes by the officials. There are. And they need to be decisive, they need to believe in what they’re calling. But saying that there’s going to be mistakes, we have to get to a system in replay that is as close to 100 percent accurate as possible.”
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NFL fans should expect changes to the league's officiating in 2026.
ESPN's Adam Schefter previously reported that changes could be coming to the NFL's officiating.
“NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations Troy Vincent informed teams today that the collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and the NFL Referees Association ends in May, making this is the final season of the agreement,” Schefter said. “The league now views this as an opportunity to take significant steps to improve officiating, pending union agreement.”
Schefter mentioned year-round training and development for officials as a point of emphasis. It's unclear if the instant replay center will receive upgrades as well.