The insanity is finished!

After nearly three weeks of on-field clumsiness, blown calls galore and never-ending timeouts, the grand experiment that was the replacement referees came to a crashing and embarrassing conclusion.

On Wednesday, the NFL and its officials decided to end a bitter and scathing dispute by agreeing to a new collective bargaining agreement that puts the real referees back on the field. The agreement, which covers an eight-year term from 2012-19, ensures that NFL officials will receive pay raises and better benefit packages. On the surface, it seems like an agreement that guarantees eight-years of happiness. And all it took was one critical call on Monday night in a game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers.

Trailing the Packers heading into the final seconds of the game, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson launched a 24-yard pass up for grabs toward the end zone. After a multitude of players leaped for the ball, Packers safety M.D. Jennings appeared to have both hands on the ball, securing an interception and a much-needed victory for the Packers.

But wait!­ Upon further (and ridiculous) review, the refs ruled that Seahawks receiver Golden Tate had his hands on the ball too. The officials ruled it a simultaneous catch. Closer review of instant replay clearly showed Tate’s arms slipping off the ball as Jennings came down with it. It is a call that is already in infamy, and a call that highlights the grandiose problems with the replacement refs.

This most recent travesty caused by the replacement referees is only the tip of a much bigger iceberg. In June, when the NFL announced it was going to open the 2012 season with replacement referees, no one-players, coaches and fans-gave this decision a second thought. When preseason games started, it was apparent that these guys were out of their league, but we didn’t care because, well, it was the preseason.

But, as the debacle on Monday night showed, the replacements refs’ ability to accurately and correctly officiate games was about as humorous as a traveling Vaudeville show. In addition to blown calls, some refs faced the wrong direction when making a call; many refs didn’t even know WHAT teams they were penalizing: One ref referred to the Atlanta Falcons as, “the Red Team.” And when they would take timeout to review a play, it seemed as if they were operating on a sundial, not a replay clock. And considering that the replacements came from NCAA Division II and III schools, NAIA and the high school ranks, was it really realistic to expect that they would be as good as the real ones? Heck, some of these guys came from the Lingerie Football League!

Regardless of the three-week travesty that fans, players and coaches were subjected to, strangely enough, I don’t hold the replacements responsible for their mishaps on the field. If the fans, players and coaches want to find someone to blame, all they have to do is point their fingers at the owners.

This squabble between the NFL and the officials could’ve been resolved if the owners were willing to hand out some of their billions of dollars. Instead, they assumed that the fans and the NFL would have their backs. They thought the criticism of the original referees would give them the leverage they needed to keep their bank accounts full. They were wrong. The NFL did what it does best-throw a dictatorial hammer down and say, “Take it, or leave it.” As for the fans, profanity-laced chants at games and smear campaigns on talk radio proved how much respect they really have for the refs.

So, now that the real refs have returned to the field, what can we expect from them? Sure, there’ll be a few blown calls, controversial whistles blown and, occasionally, backlash from the fans, players, media and coaches. But at least they’ll know when to throw flags, blow whistles and face the right direction when they announce a penalty.

On Thursday night, in a game featuring the Cleveland Browns against the Baltimore Ravens, the real NFL referees took to the field with glorious cheers and thunderous applause from the fans. It was like a scene from a cinematic epic. It felt good. Now, let the controversy begin.