Veteran NFL referee Ed Hochuli and his crew will work a Bears game for the first time this season Sunday when Tennessee comes to town.
Hochuli came under intense scrutiny after a blown call in the San Diego-Denver meeting in Week 2 that led to the Broncos winning 39-38.
There have been a number of high-profile mistakes by the league’s officiating crews this season but none has gotten more attention that the gaffe by Hochuli that he quickly admitted to making. The league, however, says officiating is as good as it has been in recent history.
“There were a couple early [major issues early],” said Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher, a member of the league’s competition committee. “There was one that was rightfully admitted to early if you’re talking about the Ed Hochuli issue. I am very excited we have Ed doing our game this week. He has been one of the best referees, I think, in the history of this game.
“That’s the human element in the game. That’s the thing we should learn to aceept and understand there are going to be mistakes, we don’t agree with them, and sometimes they’re hard. That’s just part of our game. I think that’s what makes our game great, still to a certain extent we are allowing the human element to have an impact on it.”
