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The N.F.L. and the referees’ union are close to reaching an agreement to end the lockout, but a remaining issue is how quickly the regular N.F.L. referees can return to work.

The good news is that there’s a tangible sign of progress between the NFL and the locked-out officials. The bad news is it’s progress on a lesser issue, while the major issue between the two sides is no closer to being resolved.

The NFL put its stamp of approval on the still-smoldering outcome of the Green Bay-Seattle game: Wrong call. Right review. Wrong team still wins. Seahawks 14, Packers 12. With frustration mounting among coaches, players and fans, the worst fear finally materialized: a mistake by a replacement official would decide the outcome of a game.

The furor over the work of replacement officials reached a fevered pitch during Week 3 in the NFL, especially Monday night when Seattle beat Green Bay on a desperation pass that many thought was an interception....

If the late NFL Films President Steve Sabol is up there in the great editing room in the sky, he’s having a wonderful time preparing to put together the highlights of today’s Lions-Titans game, and he’s writing an amazing script for the late NFL Films “Voice of God” narrator, John Facenda. Because today’s Lions-Titans game had everything that NFL Films has always celebrated — everything we love about football.

San Francisco's stingy defense denied Matthew Stafford another milestone, Vernon Davis caught touchdown passes of 21 and 23 yards from Alex Smith, and the 49ers beat the Detroit Lions 27-19 on Sunday night in a September showdown of NFC powers.

No parent should be shocked that five high school football players hired prostitutes while on a road trip to North Carolina last week. Nor is it especially surprising that the little johns were from football powerhouse DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville. Religion and prestige are rarely shields from temptation and stupidity.

Now that they're teammates, Peyton Manning can celebrate when Tracy Porter returns an interception for a touchdown....

NFL vs. Clinton — Clinton wins. By the time the dust settled, the NFL’s season kickoff game Wednesday between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys had fumbled away about 3 million viewers compared with last year’s season starter.

The NFL has pledged $30 million for medical research to the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health... Potential areas of research under the grant include the brain, specifically chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), concussion management and treatment, and the understanding of the relationship between traumatic brain injury and late-life neurodegenerative disorders, especially Alzheimer's disease.