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The NFL hasn't shut the door on having locked-out officials back on the field for Thursday night's prime-time game between the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens, according to a source involved with the league's plans and, as first reported by SI.com's Peter King, based on the officials' own preparation work.

There's also a competitive issue at play. The NFL is aware that employing replacement officials for the Browns-Ravens game and then having regular officials on the field for the other 14 games in Week 4 would create inequity.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts also have byes this week. This creates another motivator to get a deal done now in order to avoid some teams from playing more games under the replacement officials than others.

NFL not ruling out locked-out refs' return by Thursday night - NFL.com

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