Peter King of SI.com reports that Commissioner Roger Goodell gave his 17 game referees a pep talk on Friday afternoon.

Citing a source close to the officials, King reports that Goodell essentially said the following:   “Mistakes are going to happen.  Don’t let mistakes shake your confidence.  Don’t beat yourselves up over them. . . .  You have my complete confidence.”

King also explains that Goodell believes that the officials continue to do an excellent job, and that the mistakes are scattered.

The recent storm of criticism was sparked by referee Ed Hochuli’s horrendous call in the Week Two game between the Chargers and the Broncos.  Hochuli ruled that an obvious fumble by Denver quarterback Jay Cutler was an incomplete pass.  Via replay, Hochuli reversed his decision, but by rule he could not award possession to the Chargers, who had recovered the ball after Cutler lost it.  The blown call extended the drive that resulted in the game-winning touchdown and two-point conversion.

And Hochuli’s high profile, coupled with the ill-advised decision to respond to angry e-mails he received through his law firm’s web site, caused the matter to take on a life of its own.  Now, any errors by Hochuli’s crew attract significant attention; at one point, an AP wire story emerged during a game, after Hochuli reversed a defensive touchdown by calling Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers for a helmet-to-helmet hit when it appeared there was no helmet-to-helmet contact.

Complicating matters have been mixed signals from the league office regarding the extent of permissible criticism of officials.  After taking the position that only personal attacks or criticism of the integrity of officiating would prompt punishment, the league adopted a zero-tolerance interpretation, consistent with the letter of the applicable rule — and has since handed out $60,000 in fines to Saints coach Sean Payton, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, and Steelers linebacker James Harrison.

We’re told that the league has very recently reiterated its position on criticism of officiating via materials distributed in advance of next week’s ownership meetings.

As to Hochuli, we’ve heard speculation that the incessant scrutiny of his on-field work could prompt the NFL to find a position for him in the league office.  Though it might not seem fair to Hochuli, the problem is that he has become bigger than any official ever should be.  It’s better for officials to be as anonymous and inconspicuous as possible.  Once Hochuli coupled the oversized biceps with the undersized shirts, the seeds were planted for the problem that he and the league now face.