The NFL has taken the highly unusual step of firing down judge Hugo Cruz for performance reasons, sources confirmed to ESPN on Thursday.
Cruz last worked in Week 6 and is no longer an NFL employee.
Cruz, who joined the NFL in 2015, was responsible for one high-profile mistake this season. He missed an obvious false start by Los Angeles Chargers left tackle Russell Okung on a scoring play in Week 6 against the Cleveland Browns. He did not work in Week 7.
The news was first reported by FootballZebras.com, which tracks college and pro football officiating trends. According to the website, the NFL has never fired an official in-season during the Super Bowl era because of performance. [Reply]
I mean, he must’ve gotten caught stealing office supplies or something. We know they don’t fire for even GROSS incompetence. In fact they usually promote for it. [Reply]
