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Eastin on sideline for Preseason Week 2

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[media-credit name=”Mike Jurecki | XTRA 910 Sports.” align=”alignright” width=”150″]

Shannon Eastin at Cardinals practice on July 28.

[/media-credit] Shannon Eastin will have to wait at least week to continue her history-making stint as the first female NFL referee.

A source with knowledge of the second week assignments of the replacement officials indicates that Eastin will be in uniform, but will be an alternate. In the first full week of preseason games, Eastin debuted as a line judge during the nationally televised Packers-Chargers contest. Following the game, her hat and whistle were sent to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Her performance was rather routine, which is always good news for any official. Our source indicates that Eastin’s assignment as an alternate was scheduled before her debut, and therefore is not performance-related.

The NFL and the NFL Referees Association have not reached an agreement on a collective bargaining agreement, so the 121 union officials remain locked out of working these games. The NFL has hired replacements from smaller college divisions, the United Football League, and the Arena Football League.

While there are no indications from either side of progress in the negotiations, Eastin will only get an opportunity to officiate in the third preseason weekend if the impasse is not resolved.

Ben Austro is the editor and founder of Football Zebras and the author of So You Think You Know Football?: The Armchair Ref's Guide to the Official Rules (on sale now)

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