Nate Jones talks going from NFL player to NFL ref, Bill Belichick vs Bill Parcells, officiating the tush push

NFL: Move the Sticks with Daniel Jeremiah & Bucky Brooks

NFL

Sports, Football

4.7 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 16 July 2025

⏱️ 46 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Former NFL cornerback turned NFL official Nate Jones joins Peanut and Roman for a candid, behind-the-scenes look at life on both sides of the whistle. He dives into the mental and physical demands of officiating, the reality of “makeup calls,” and what it’s like dealing with overzealous parents at youth games. Nate reflects on what it was like being coached by both Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells, and the sting of the infamous Tony Romo botched field goal game. He also opens up about retiring on his own terms, finding a new passion in officiating, and the feeling of being “drafted” to the NFL as a ref. From the evolution of technology in football to his personal Mount Rushmore of influences, Nate brings insight, humor, and heart to this one-of-a-kind conversation.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is an IHeart podcast.
0:23.4	Guaranteed Human. Do you like practice like, to everybody? Yeah, yeah, but like in the mirror you ever like, you practice. That's a thing. That's a thing. Like, you get to, like, you practice first out. And practice the field goes correct. And more than that, you got to know your mechanics, how you look. Right. And sometimes you'll see it first when we get excited and we start missing it and go backwards and yeah
0:24.1	that's a
0:24.8	fun And more than that, you gotta know your mechanics, how you look. Right. And sometimes you'll see officials we get excited and we start missing it and go backwards.
0:23.9	Yeah, that's a fumble for us, right?
0:25.6	Like, that look crazy.
0:27.1	But, you know, you want to be spooked with it when you get it because you do this, it makes you look nervous.
0:34.7	What's up everybody?
0:39.8	I'm Peanut Tillman and this is the NFL player second act podcast.
0:44.3	With me as always is my trusty co-hosts, Roman.
0:48.4	Yeah, you like it.
0:49.3	Just, yeah, appreciate that.
0:51.4	Harper, I'm really looking for it.
0:53.4	I don't even know what that is.
0:54.5	Yeah, you shouldn't.
0:55.5	It was a TJ Max purchase. It was great. Number one, I can't wait to have our next guest on. Super cool guy. Very accomplished. And he's the first. Yeah. For us. First. First. Right? Now, I don't want to give away what he does, but he is a, before you talk about his whole resume, he is currently a referee in the NFL.
1:15.7	So you messed my intro up.
1:17.4	I had a whole thing that I was doing and you messed it up.
1:20.3	He came into the league twice, once as a player and secondly as an official.
1:24.4	We played eight years in the league.
1:25.7	Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the pod.
1:27.0	Mr. Nate, Joe! Yes! Thank you, thank you, fellas. You might be the only one to ever do that, coming to the league twice. Yeah, it's right now on the staff, it's two other Terry Klin and Mike Morton. Okay. Yeah, so it's three of us total right now on the staff that have played and now also officiating.
	...

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