Despite making over $200,000 a year, many NFL referees still hold full-time jobs as attorneys, aerospace engineers, and college professors
Source: Fortune ·
Gen Z may be juggling multiple jobs out of financial necessity, but they’re not alone. Many of the NFL’s 121 referees hold second jobs—just for fun.
From the source
From August to January, NFL officials travel weekly across the country—and sometimes abroad—to oversee some of the world’s most-watched sporting events. But when the final whistle blows, another job is often waiting for them the next morning. Many of the NFL’s 121 officials hold full-time jobs outside football: Clete Blakeman is a personal injury attorney in Nebraska, Brad Rogers is a senior lecturer at Texas Tech University’s business school, and Shawn Hochuli is a California-based financial advisor. The unusual career combinations recently went viral on social media. But these aren’t just side hustles to supplement their NFL paychecks. Referees earned an average of $205,000 a year in 2025, according to Sports Illustrated, on top of a reported 10% increase in per-game pay in 2026. Instead, many officials built careers in other fields before reaching the NFL—and continue to pursue them alongside football. Shawn Smith joined the NFL in 2015, but has also spent the last three decades…