The NFL promoted Al Riveron to its top officiating job Wednesday, opting for continuity in replacing outgoing chief Dean Blandino.
Riveron spent the past five years as senior director of officiating, in essence the No. 2 job in the department. He was an on-field official from 2004 to '12, including the final four years as a referee, and is well-respected among current officials who appreciate that experience.
"We all know Al from his days on the field and then as Dean's assistant," said Scott Green, the executive vice president of the NFL referees' association. "So yes, we look forward to working with Al."
Riveron, whose official title will be senior vice president of officiating, was always the top candidate to replace Blandino, who informed the NFL last month that he would depart in May for a job in broadcasting. The only other notable name considered for the job is believed to be Walt Anderson, currently one of the league's 17 referees.
Blandino tweeted his congratulations to Riveron.
Congrats to Alberto Riveron as the new NFL SVP of Officiating! Very happy for him. The complaint window is now closed... pic.twitter.com/6TUWwLcQ4G
— Dean Blandino (@DeanBlandino) May 10, 2017
In the time since Blandino's announcement, the league appeared to recognize that the job responsibilities had grown too big for one person. As ESPN reported last month, the NFL created a new position (vice president of instant replay and administration) to focus on a newly approved game-day initiative for all replay reviews to be decided from its command center in New York.
Russell Yurk, a replay official for the past seven years, was hired for that job. According to the league, he will direct the replay operation and supervise its personnel. In addition, the league promoted Wayne Mackie, an on-field official for 10 years, to the new role of vice president of officiating evaluation and development.
Mackie and Yurk will report to Riveron, who reports to Troy Vincent, the NFL's executive vice president of football operations. In a statement, Vincent said that the new structure will "provide us with a sustainable model for greater efficiency, improved performance from our officials and operational excellence in collaboration, development and training of our officiating team."