Echoes of replacement refs. Alex Avila Jersey .One item in the labour agreement the NFL struck with its game officials in 2012 after the lockout called for all-star crews working the post-season.The NFL Referees Association insisted on it. The league was so eager to get the regulars back on the field after the replacement officials debacle that it agreed.After the uproar surrounding one specific non-call in the Detroit-Dallas wild-card game Sunday — and other calls made or ignored over the weekend — lots of people are wondering why the NFL gave in.Generally, before 2004 the highest-rated full crews worked playoff games and the Super Bowl. That changed to a hybrid system in 04 that allowed for eliminating lower-rated officials on some crews from working the post-season.Moving to the current all-star approach allows for officials rated highest at each position by supervisors to get the premium assignments. But it also can rob the crews working the critical January and February games of the cohesion developed through a full preseason and regular season.Regardless, until the CBA with the officials union runs out after next years post-season, the all-star format is in effect.So how are these officials evaluated?—Officiating supervisors rate performances of on-field referees, umpires, linesmen and judges every week on every play. All of the supervisors are former on-field officials.The crewmembers get to see those weekly reports.—Officials get an accuracy percentage on their calls for the entire season, which takes into account the calls made and missed, and calls that should have been made, says Dean Blandino, director of NFL officiating.—Then the officials are grouped into three tiers based on that accuracy percentage of their calls. Those in Tier 1 are eligible for playoff assignments, including the Super Bowl and the conference championships.Those in Tier 2 will fill in the blanks and handle some of the other playoff games.If an official is in Tier 3, he gets no post-season assignments and could be up for employment review, Blandino says.Seniority is not taken into account.—Once placed in a tier, the officials are divided up based on other criteria. That includes decisiveness, clarity of explanations, control of the game, physical fitness, and several other categories.The officials who rate best overall are chosen to work the post-season.—No crew will work more than two games. The Super Bowl crew will handle one of this weekends games, meaning that Pete Morellis group that worked the Lions-Cowboys contest will not do the big game.For the Super Bowl crew, we want them to work one game, and the divisional round is best, Blandino says. Its not that long a break after the season or before the Super Bowl. It fits right in the middle.Often, several of the officiating crew members will have worked a game or more during the regular season, perhaps even much of the schedule. For Lions-Cowboys, Blandino says four of the officials had been at the same regular-season game, but none had worked with Morelli in 2014.As for which particular games the crews get in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Blandino says the NFL will look at the matchups and the two teams and tendencies, and then look at the officials and if they fit for certain matchups.Could the assignment system be changed once the CBA with the officials union concludes?Its definitely something to look at after the 2015 season, Blandino says, but at this point there is no strong opinion one way or the other.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Archie Bradley Diamondbacks Jersey . Venus Williams advanced to the ASB Classic final in Auckland on a walkover when fellow American Jamie Hampton withdrew from their semifinal Friday with a right hip injury. Patrick Corbin Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla. http://www.diamondbacksapparelsshop.com/aj-pollock-jersey-c-11/ . TSN Hockey Insiders Pierre LeBrun and Bob McKenzie both reported Thursday that there have been ongoing trade discussions between the Oilers and Los Angeles Kings over forward Sam Gagner.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Boston Celtics aim to get back in the win column when they visit the Charlotte Hornets Wednesday at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Celtics won all three games on a recent homestand and the streak came to an end with Mondays 133-132 double-overtime road setback to the Washington Wizards. Boston rallied from a 23-point deficit in the third quarter and outscored the Wizards, 34-18, in the final stanza to force overtime. Wizards guard John Wall scored the last 10 points for Washington in the second OT and handed out a career-high 17 assists to go with 26 points. Former Celtics star Paul Pierce scored 28 points. Those transition baskets killed us, both overtimes, Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. John Wall killed us in transition. Jeff Green led Boston with 28 points, rookie Marcus Smart added a career-high 23 and Kelly Olynyk finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Brandon Bass and Evan Turner scored 19 and 18 points, respectively, for the Celtics, who shot 46.1 percent and posted 32 points on 23 Washington turnovers. Rajon Rondo had no points and four assists in 20 minutes of action. Rondo was more of a spectator for how well Bostons reserves were playing. Those guys deserved to play at the end because they got us right back in it, Stevens said of the bench. Chris Owings Diamondbacks Jersey. After visiting the Hornets, the Celtics will return home to host rival New York Friday night at TD Garden. Boston is 2-5 on the road. Charlotte ended a 10-game losing streak with a 103-102 triumph over the Knicks on Friday and will close out a three-game homestand. Kemba Walkers layup with 0.3 seconds to play lifted the Hornets to their first victory since Nov. 14 at Phoenix. Knicks star Carmelo Anthony gave his team a 102-101 lead off an open 3-pointer with 40.7 seconds to play. Each team missed a jump shot and the Hornets took a timeout with four seconds to play after Marvin Williams rebounded Anthonys miss. Walker then took the inbounds pass and scurried through the lane. I just saw an open lane ... I knew I had to get to the basket in a hurry and I was able to get a shot up, Walker said. Gerald Henderson finished with a season-high 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting, Al Jefferson had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Lance Stephenson also scored 16 points for Charlotte. The Hornets are 4-7 at The Hive and will visit the Memphis Grizzlies Friday. Charlotte and Boston will play the first of four meetings this season. The Celtics took two of three matchups with Charlotte last season. Cheap Canadiens Jerseys Cheap Predators Jerseys Cheap Devils Jerseys Cheap Islanders Jerseys Cheap Rangers Jerseys Cheap Senators Jerseys Cheap Flyers Jerseys Cheap Penguins Jerseys Cheap Sharks Jerseys Cheap Blues Jerseys Cheap Lightning Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Cheap Canucks Jerseys Cheap Golden Knights Jerseys Cheap Capitals Jerseys Cheap Winnipeg Jets Jerseys ' ' '