Steve Freeman (American football)

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Steve Freeman
Personal information
Born: (1953-05-08) May 8, 1953 (age 70)
Lamesa, Texas, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
College:Mississippi State
Position:Defensive back
NFL draft:1975 / Round: 5 / Pick: 117
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com

Steven Jay Freeman (born May 8, 1953) is a former

game official for the National Football League
(NFL).

Freeman played college football at Mississippi State University, becoming the Bulldogs' leader in interceptions during the 1973 and 1974 seasons.[1] He was later named as one of the Southeastern Conference Football Legends.[2]

He was selected by the NFL's

1975 NFL Draft.[3] However, he was released by the Patriots before the start of the regular season, and eventually signed with the Buffalo Bills.[4] Freeman spent 12 season with Buffalo, compiling 23 career interceptions and three touchdowns.[5] In 1980 alone, he intercepted seven passes for 107 yards and one touchdown. He spent his last NFL season, 1987, with the Minnesota Vikings after being traded by the Bills.[6]

After retiring as a player, Freeman became an

back judge. As an official, he wears uniform number 133 and is on the officiating crew headed by referee Alex Kemp
.

One of Freeman's teammates in Buffalo was linebacker Jim Haslett, who later became head coach of the New Orleans Saints. Although the two were teammates for seven seasons, Freeman was not prohibited from working Saints' games during Haslett's tenure (2001-05; Haslett's first season was 2000), nor St. Louis Rams games during Haslett's stint as interim coach in 2008. While in the SEC, Freeman was prohibited from working Mississippi State games, as league rules do not allow officials to work games involving any school which they attended.

Freeman resides in

TCF Bank Stadium
, where the kickoff temperature of −6 °F (−3 °C) made it the third coldest game in NFL history.

Freeman chose to opt out of the 2020 NFL season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]

References

  1. ^ "Four named to MSU Sports Hall of Fame". Mississippi State University. 2000. Archived from the original on May 28, 2010. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  2. ^ "Past SEC Football Legends". Southeastern Conference. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  3. ^ "1975 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  4. ^ Brady, Erik (September 23, 2020). "As Bills safety and official, Steve Freeman loved the middle of the field". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  5. .
  6. ^ "Where Are They Now: Steve Freeman". BuffaloBills.com. March 12, 2003. Archived from the original on November 27, 2006. Retrieved December 28, 2006.
  7. ^ Patra, Kevin (August 14, 2020). "Five on-field, two replay officials opt out of 2020 season". NFL.com. Retrieved March 14, 2021.