For all those NFL fans who pondered over the years why referees had to huddle so often during games, who questioned the need for hundreds of tedious mid-field caucuses over innocuous false-start penalties, we now have an explanation.

It seems, in light of events of the past day, the zebras were neither discussing clipping nor planning to have dinner that evening. The prime topic of conversation wasn't a replay call, how many timeouts each team had remaining, or whether the offensive tackle for the home team was holding on every pass play.

Nope, apparently the referees were hatching a plot to overthrow their leadership, a palace coup that might have culminated Monday with a reported tentative contract agreement between the NFL and the NFL Referees Association.

In one of life's wondrous ironies, it now seems the officials opted to end the lockout by locking out two of their high-profile hierarchy, NFLRA president Ed Hochuli and general counsel Tom Condon.

At least if all the circumstantial evidence adds up.

After years of watching end runs, several of the referees seemingly figured out how to enact one, skirting Condon and Hochuli by cutting a deal that, if ratified by membership, could have the game officials back on the field by this weekend.

	And so, it seems, we are left with this: The NFL could have a ratified agreement within the next day or so, after the officials vote by e-mail, but it's a deal hammered out by some guys who must not have agreed much with the direction of their leadership anymore.

Throughout the day on Monday, over the course of several conversations, Condon hinted that an accord wasn't nearly as imminent as some league sources were suggesting. Then at about 10 p.m. ET, after reports of a deal had been leaked to various media outlets, Condon pointedly told ESPN.com: "I do not have a deal with the NFL."

Notable is that Condon chose the pronoun "I" and not "we." Word is that Hochuli, who is an attorney by trade and knows something of contract law, also denied a deal was struck. Problem is, it certainly looks now like neither Hochuli nor Condon were in the loop on this one.

Over the weekend, NFLRA executive director Bill Carollo and Jeff Bergman, a member of the negotiating committee, apparently convinced NFL officials they were empowered to bargain for the 119-man membership. Their negotiating position severely weakened, and with the league dialing back its offer to one first posited in mid-June, the referees had clearly lost much of their leverage and feared they would end up like baseball's umpires.

And so Bergman and Carollo negotiated with the league, presumably with NFL counsel Jeff Pash. And then the NFL, sensing a chance for an accord and an end to its troubling dispute, sent in the big gun. Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney, the man responsible for having reconciled the NFL's two ugliest work stoppages and who continues to play a key role in dealing with players and the collective bargaining agreement, entered the fray.

Within about 48 hours, the tentative agreement was reached, apparently over whatever objections Hochuli and Condon were able to lodge at that point.

It's hard to blame the league on this one. They were dealing, after all, with people who claimed they had been authorized to negotiate. For all we know, they were, perhaps in a secret vote of the membership no longer in lockstep with its appointed leaders.

There was a palpable sense over the weekend, in the wake of the terrorist attacks on this country, that the time was right for conciliation. Condon was ready to negotiate, but he probably should have gotten a little wary of what might be transpiring behind his back when he never got the phone call Sunday he had been anticipating from one of the top league officials with whom he had been dealing.

Then on Monday, in his discussions with the league, Condon laid out a proposal for a six-year deal that included salary increases ranging from 50 percent in the first season to 175 percent in 2006. The league countered Condon's request for hikes of 150 and 175 percent in the final two years with an offer of 125 and 150 percent raises. And at that point, some sources contend, the talks broke off.

Or at least the talks in which Condon and Hochuli were involved.

Notable is that some league officials were a bit hacked off at Condon anyway, assuming he had leaked the contents of a letter he sent to the NFL last week, one in which the refs proposed they return to work and donate their first week's salaries to the victims of the terrorist bombings.

That leak came during a period in which the NFL felt it had agreed with Condon that any talks between the two sides would be in confidence, with no media knowledge. But it was anger misplaced, in truth, since the conspirator who had actually leaked the letter was a referee attempting to recapture some support for a group whose profile had waned after the league made it through Week 1 of regular-season games with replacement arbiters.

And so, it seems, we are left with this: The NFL could have a ratified agreement within the next day or so, after the officials vote by e-mail, but it's a deal hammered out by some guys who must not have agreed much with the direction of their leadership anymore.

Funny, but during this whole dispute, we've heard about how the regular referees are a group of professionals. You know, the best in the world, stand-up guys, respected folks of moral standing and just cause. Turns out instead that this collection of attorneys and school administrators and businessmen were actually more like politicians, capable of back-room bargains and knowledgeable about power plays.

Turns out, too, that we won't need to huddle up at midfield this weekend to know they ought to be flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.