Much has been made of females now officiating NFL football… and one would think their debut would be a clear-cut historic first. But, as it turns out, there are firsts… and there are firsts… and noting who was actually and/or “technically” the first woman referee in the NFL is quite an interesting tale and somewhat controversial.

It all begins in 2012 with a labor dispute between the NFL league and the union of the NFL referees (NFLRA) that resulted in a lockout. With the start of 2012 NFL season looming near, and the two sides unable to reach an agreement, the play clock was ticking and – for the NFL – desperate times called for desperate measure.

Season 93 – Plan B

The 2012 NFL season was the 93rd year for the National Football League (NFL) and as a stalemate inched closer every day, NFLRA members remained locked out and alternatives were under consideration. 

“The 2012 season needed to begin,” notes Barry Mano, Publisher of Referee magazine, “and the games obviously had to be staffed with officials.”

The result was a decision by the NFL to hastily recruit a “replacement” roster of referees to officiate the 2012 season now just weeks away. The first logical choice was to turn to the experienced collegiate level. “But most college football officials opted not to cross the picket line to fill in for these games,” notes Mano, “as they felt an affinity for their professional NFLRA counterparts.” 

The replacement officials hired then consisted of high school or college officials from lower divisions and some were from other sources such as the Arena Football League.

“Replacements had to be found,” adds Mano, ”and a controversial historic ‘first’ was inadvertently swept up in that effort as well.”

Shannon Eastin “Lady Ref”

Scouts continually monitor football at all levels nationwide, looking for up and coming officiating talent, and – in 2012 – Shannon Eastin was one such referee earmarked with potential.

Eastin, from Tempe, Arizona, had been steadily racking up points with over 16 combined seasons of noteworthy officiating for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, high school games and the Arizona Cardinals Red and White game – and she was a contender.

During the lockout of full-time referees which began in June 2012, she was recruited as one of the needed replacement officials quickly assembled to get the NFL season underway. Shannon debated long and hard before accepting. ”It was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.” 

Eastin recounts two days of NFL clinics after which she officiated her first game on August 9th – one of the six preseason games played that day – as a Line Judge wearing black-and-white striped jersey number 27 for a game between the Green Bay Packers and the San Diego Chargers.

“I knew millions would be watching,“ she adds, “and it was the chance of a lifetime.”

Thursday Night Football

Back in the days when Thursday night football was broadcast for all to see, the night of August 9th drew a record 7.3 million TV viewers for the preseason opener – Green Bay Packers at San Diego Chargers.

It was a typical balmy 70-degree evening for the 7:00pm kick-off at Quallcomm Stadium in San Diego with 70,000 excited fans in attendance. Already prepared for some possible unusual officiating by the replacement officials, fans were also caught off guard when the TV camera panned the field. Viewers noticed something different. There was the usual compliment of seven officials … but wait minute… that Line Judge is (gasp) a woman!

And yes, there were some odd calls and strange delays, but Eastin held her own… not too involved until late in the game… when things picked up for her in the second half. She made a few calls (one with boos) and later signaled a Green Bay touchdown… and soon, Plan B of season 93 was over and officially in the books.

The Yes and the No 

As a matter of accuracy, those who chronicle pro NFL football do note ‘Yes, the first female to work an NFL game was indeed Shannon Eastin.” That is also why the officiating cap she wore and whistle she used in that first game are now in the archives of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

Eastin also went on to referee three regular season games until the NFLRA reached an agreement and original officials were scheduled to resume in Week Four.

What occurred that on first day of August 9, 2012 – while going against the union and recruited by happenstance – it still must be noted that her presence was historically a first. However, it is also one that will forever be recorded in the annals of pro football history with an asterisk.

Shannon’s brief tenure with the league – as well others in the roster of replacement officials – was ultimately short-lived and has since faded into history, obscure and not easily understood or clearly expressed.

Regular Refs Return

The lockout ended when an agreement was reached only two days after a highly-questionable call for a game-winning touchdown during the final play of Week Three’s Monday night game caused a firestorm and heated debate that brought the use of the replacements to an end.

As a result, the standard seven-man professional crew donned their familiar stripes for the first game of Week Four… after only a few weeks of replacement officials creating unsettling moments of chaos, questionable calls and strange delays that resulted in dissatisfaction all throughout the league and with fans nationwide.

Before kickoff, when they walked on the field, they heard cheers and – as they waved to the crowd – they received a thundering standing ovation. One fan, holding a sign that read Welcome Back, was heard to yell, ““Finally! We get to yell at real refs!”

Pro football is an emotional game… and the same fans who happily cheered the kickoff soon where back to cat calls and boos in the never ending and endearing love-hate relationship between fans and officials.  

Getting it Right

All was well again and the pros referees were back in play. Fans were pleased and the succession, training and introduction of new officiating personnel resumed as well.

One outstanding candidate that was duly scouted, rated and poised to become the first female referee was unfortunately sidelined when the lockout took place. 

Sarah Thomas – who had steadily worked her way through the early rigors of qualifying for NFL officiating – was deemed non-eligible to perform as one of the replacements for the preseason due to being a member of the NFLRA union.  But her day would soon come.

Thomas had long been on the NFL’s radar and her officiating in the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly known as Division 1) since 2007, when she became the first female ever to work a major college football game and early on, when she was slated to become the first female NFL referee.

A Lasting NFL First                                                                                                    

Thomas, who played basketball in college, was no stranger to breaking down barriers and she has been a pioneer for her entire officiating career.

Early on, she worked in professional training camps and attended several officiating clinics. Working alongside veteran NFL officials and elite football talent prepared her for the next level.

In turn, Sarah Thomas was the first woman to officiate a major college football game, the first to officiate a bowl game, and the first to officiate in a Big Ten stadium… and on April 8, 2015, Sarah Thomas achieved her football dream by becoming the first full-time female official in NFL history.

In rapid succession, Thomas rapidly began her ascent in officiating. In January 2019, she became the first female on-field official in playoff history. Soon, wearing her now-familiar number 53 and sporting a highly-visible blonde ponytail, in January 2021, she became the first woman to earn an on-field assignment for an NFL playoff game. 

And in February 2021, after six NFL seasons and four career playoff games, she was ultimately selected for the Super Bowl LV officiating crew. Wearing her signature number 53 and in the Down Judge Position – millions watched she became the first woman ever to officiate a Super Bowl.

Pro Football Firsts                                                                                                          

There will forever be a footnote explaining that Shannon Eastin served only as a replacement during an NFL referee lockout caused by a dispute over a new collective bargaining agreement…. and so it was.

Unquestionably, there are “firsts” and there are “firsts”… and while the hastily recruited replacement officials of 2012 served their purpose, when their short tenure ended, they soon faded into obscurity as an oddity created by necessity. There is no question it is unfortunate that Eastin’s debut was under such circumstance and overshadowed by controversy. 

Conversely, Sarah Thomas started as a line judge in 2015 and made her way up to being a down judge in 2017, which today reflects a gender-neutral position thanks to her.  She truly ignited change and paved the way for female referees everywhere, especially in the NFL.

“In total, there have been four females in the NFL with formal officiating roles and three remain active,” states Barry Mano. “Besides Sarah Thomas, there’s Maia Chaka and Robin DeLorenzo…both Line Judges since 2021 and 2022 respectively. In 2012 Terri Valenti also joined the NFL as a Replay Coordinator and Replay Official in 2016 until she retired in 2021.”

In retrospect and in reality, perhaps the two historic Pro Football “female firsts” should not be weighed against each other… but rather, be taken in factual tandem as Eastin’s unwelcomed and unlikely beginning and Thomas’s much-heralded and well-earned debut that officially “broke the barrier” and shattered the proverbial “grass ceiling” in Pro Football and the NFL… both today and for all time.

The whistle has blown and the call has been made… all without challenge. 

Somewhere, a young girl is watching… and thinking… “I can do that.”

Don Logay is an award-winning journalist and former Editor-in-Chief of three national magazines. Today he writes luxury lifestyle articles for numerous publications. He can be reached at (949) 240-4444 or press@donlogay.com.