The 2012 NFL season was the 93rd season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 47th of the Super Bowl era. It began on Wednesday, September 5, 2012, with the defending Super Bowl XLVI champion New York Giants falling to the Dallas Cowboys in the 2012 NFL Kickoff game at MetLife Stadium, and ended with Super Bowl XLVII, the league's championship game, on Sunday, February 3, 2013, at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, with the Jim Harbaugh-coached San Francisco 49ers facing the John Harbaugh-coached Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens won the game, which marked the first time two brothers were head coaches for opposing teams in the championship game. Referee labor dispute In 2005, the NFL and NFL Referees Association agreed to a contract that would last through the 2011 season. In 2011, the officials' union had planned to use a contract clause to reopen negotiations a year early, but this failed to occur due to the 2011 NFL lockout. By June 2012, the league and the officials' union had not yet come to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement, thus failing to resolve the labor dispute. The main issues between the union and the league were changes to the retirement plan, salaries, and personnel. On June 4, 2012, the NFL announced it would begin hiring replacement officials. On September 26, 2012, an agreement was reached to end the lockout after increasing criticism of the NFL and the performance of the replacement officials. The contentious nature of the replacement officials' decision at the end of the Green Bay Packers–Seattle Seahawks game two days earlier was widely considered to have been the tipping point that finally led to an agreement. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledged that the game "may have pushed the parties further along" in negotiations. Player movement The 2012 NFL League year and trading period began at 4pm EST on March 13 2012, which marked the start of the league's free agency period. The per-team salary cap was set at US$120,600,000, marginally increased from US$120,000,000 the previous year. Free agency Notable players to change teams during free agency included: Quarterbacks Jason Campbell (Oakland to Chicago), Matt Flynn (Green Bay to Seattle), Chad Henne (Miami to Jacksonville), Peyton Manning (Indianapolis to Denver) and Kyle Orton (Kansas City to Dallas) Running backs Cedric Benson (Cincinnati to Green Bay), Michael Bush (Oakland to Chicago) and BenJarvus Green-Ellis (New England to