Games have averaged 15 penalties, the third-highest leaguewide average through Week 4 since the 1970 merger, according to research by NBC Sports. The number of total fouls called per game, 16.86, is down from the 17.44 that were called at the same point of last season, according to a league spokesman<\/a>. That still is higher than the number of fouls called through Week 4 in 2024 (15.52), 2023 (15.34) and 2022 (14.38).<\/p>\n Penalties are only one reason officials are in the spotlight.<\/p>\n The NFL this week took the rare public step of announcing suspensions of two officials after line judge Jeff Seeman was shown on camera cursing multiple times toward Arizona tight end Trey McBride, leading to a two-game suspension. Referee Adrian Hill also was suspended, for one game, for his contentious reaction to Minnesota\u2019s Eric Wilson after accidental contact knocked Hill to the ground. The NFL said the instances reflected \u201cunprofessional conduct,\u201d while the union that represents NFL officials vowed to challenge the discipline, calling it \u201cexcessive and inconsistent with past precedent.\u201d <\/p>\n Coaches including Minnesota\u2019s Kevin O\u2019Connell and Arizona\u2019s Mike LaFleur complimented the work of Seeman and Hill. <\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of verbal back-and-forth, or really one-way traffic, from the coaches, players to the officials, but we\u2019ve always told the officials you cannot respond in kind,\u201d former NFL referee Dean Blandino said this week<\/a>.<\/p>\n Though the union disagreed with the level of punishment handed down, it did acknowledge that such verbal back-and-forth was not necessarily an outlier. In a statement, the referees\u2019 union said it wanted to meet with the players\u2019 union \u201cto address on-field conduct and the growing levels of confrontation between players and officials.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s about time,\u201d Super Bowl-winning former coach Bruce Arians said this week<\/a> about the discipline. \u201cYou know, there\u2019s finally some accountability in that department.\u201d <\/p>\n The NFL does not exempt officials from accountability. It just rarely publicizes it. Referees\u2019 performances are judged using internal grades for which high performers are rewarded with high-profile postseason assignments, while consistently low scorers can lose their jobs. <\/p>\n A new and more visible accountability measure exists, as well. As part of a new, seven-year collective bargaining agreement between the league and its referees that was established in May, the NFL has created a \u201cbench\u201d of referees who can step in for in-game switches.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re going to start working this weekend,\u201d Blandino said<\/a>. \u201cSo if you have an underperforming official on a crew, that official will sit down and you\u2019ll have a bench official that will come in like that backup, that No. 2, that will come in and work for them.\u201d <\/p>\n The NFL this week also walked back fines \u2014 ranging from $8,847 to $14,926 \u2014 it had issued multiple players for celebrations the league initially said showed them imitating chugging a beer, which it deemed an offensive demonstration. In one case, San Francisco\u2019s Kyle Juszczyk said he was imitating drinking from a juice box<\/a>, a play on his last name\u2019s pronunciation and his \u201cJuice\u201d nickname.<\/p>\n \u201cEven if it was beer, I don\u2019t think that should be a problem with all the beer endorsements that we have in the NFL,\u201d Juszczyk told reporters after the fine was issued. \u201cWe have everything. So even if it was beer, which it wasn\u2019t, I still felt like it wasn\u2019t an infraction.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Line](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/261007-nfl-referees-vsb-2258-be5f3e.jpg\")
Seeman returns the challenge flag to New York Giants coach John Harbaugh during a game against the Arizona Cardinals in East Rutherford, N.J., on Sunday.Caleb Bowlin \/ Getty<\/p>\n![\"Referee](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/261007-nfl-referees-vsb-2301-195914.jpg\")
Referee Alan Eck, center, and umpire Paul King, left, talk things over with Seeman, right, during a wild-card playoff game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Philadelphia Eagles in Philadelphia on Jan. 11.Chris Szagola \/ AP<\/p>\n