While Saints fans must be feeling picked on as NFL game officials made another error that damaged them in the opener, it must be noted that pro football hardly has a monopoly on officiating problems.

Yes, things have gotten murky in that area in the NFL, so much so that pass interference now can be challenged by coaches and reviewed in video replay. Don’t underestimate how big a step that was for the league, though when Commissioner Roger Goodell seeks something, he usually gets it.

Issues with NFL officiating hardly are new. They get more focus and grow more controversial as TV technology develops.

But never forget that the guys blowing whistles are seeing things in real time, in a sport played by men who become bigger, faster and stronger by the year. NFL officiating is all about angles and making quick decisions.

“No one on the field has the benefit of slow-motion replays and lengthy looks at what just happened,” says former NFL officiating chief Mike Pereira, now one of Fox’s officiating analysts, along with his successor at the league, Dean Blandino. “It’s bang-bang, all the time.”

As it is in most sports that require rules enforcers. And replay, which is designed to, well, get things right, is not infallible. Or, the judgment of those watching replays and then making decisions isn’t always perfect.

Maybe the spotlight shines even brighter on the NFL because of all the eyeballs watching in the stands or on TV or streaming games — most of them critics with their own opinions on every play. Certainly the fact pro football draws the most wagering in the United States, and an officiating blunder can cost bettors tons of money, leads to hefty censure.