Jeff Bergman will retire after 2022 season, planning to join the 30 Club

Line judge Jeff Bergman will retire following the 2022 NFL season, according to Referee magazine. Bergman, 66, is currently sitting out of the 2020 season as one of the five on-field officials who chose to opt out of the season due to covid-19 related concerns. Bergman notified the league in August that he plans to officiate two more seasons, and retire at the conclusion of the 2022 season.

If Bergman’s intentions go as planned, he will become the 8th member of the prestigious NFL Officiating 30 Club: a short list of officials who worked in the NFL for at least 30 seasons. Although hired as a line judge in 1991, Bergman has taken two separate leaves of absence (1997 and 2020 seasons), and will officiate his 30th NFL season in 2022. Bergman’s father, Jerry Bergman, Sr., is a member of the 30 Club, having officiated as an NFL head linesman from 1966 to 1995.

Through 28 seasons as a line of scrimmage official, Bergman has officiated 22 postseason games, including 8 Wild Card Playoffs, 9 Divisional Playoffs, 3 Conference Championships, and Super Bowls XXXI and LIII. He will have an opportunity to add to that résumé once he returns to the field next season.