The NFL’s First All-Black Crew To Officiate On-Field And Replay Included 3 Black Women

The NFL made the right call at Dec. 14’s match-up between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders.

The game was the first time the league had an all-Black, on-field referee and off-field replay crew. It was also the first time three women (one on the field and two in the replay booth) were on the same crew.

Referee Ronald Torbert led the historic lineup on the field. The all-black female officials were Maia Chaka (line judge), Artenzia Young-Seigler (replay official) and Desiree Abrams (replay assistant), Sports Illustrated reported.

The remaining on-field referees included Patrick Holt (down judge), Keith Washington (side judge), Barry Anderson (Umpire), Nathan Jones (field judge) and Greg Yette (back judge).

The outlet shared a statement from Troy Vincent, the executive vice president of Football Operations for the NFL, regarding the notable crew.

“This historic Week 11 crew is a testament to the countless and immeasurable contributions of Black officials to the game, their exemplary performance, and to the power of inclusion that is the hallmark of this great game,” he told Sports Illustrated.

The three women not only represented a tremendous shift in the NFL, but they also represented HBCUs. Chaka, the first Black woman to officiate NFL games, is a graduate of Norfolk State University. Young-Seigler is an alumnus of Paul Quinn College, and Abrams holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Florida A&M University.

The first time the league saw an all-Black on-field officiating crew was in 2020, led by Jerome Boger, who began his career with the league in 2006. He was only the third Black referee the game had seen at the point.

In 1988, Johnny Grier became the first Black referee in league history. That year, he called Super Bowl XXII, in which Doug Williams (Washington Commanders) became the first Black quarterback to win the big game.

Twenty years before Grier made his mark, Burl Toler was the first Black game official as a head linesman. Beginning his position in 1965, Toler was considered the first Black game official in any major professional sports league.

The NFL has attempted to bring diversity to the game on and off the field. In November, The Las Vegas Raiders made history as the first NFL team to have an all-Black leadership group. The team boasts the first Black woman president, Sandra Douglass Morgan; a Black head coach, Antonio Pierce; and a Black general manager, Champ Kelly.

Douglass-Morgan was named president of the team in 2022. She is the third woman and third Black person to become president of an NFL team. At the time of her appointment, she spoke about changing what leadership looks like in the NFL.

“I definitely never want to be the last,” she said, per CBS News. “And I want to get to a point where there is no more firsts.”