BEREA, Ohio - Sarah Thomas starts the day at her second job by tucking her long blond hair inside her cap, so she doesnt get noticed. Cheap Kalen Ballage Jersey . On a football field, thats impossible. Thomas doesnt consider herself a pioneer, just "one of the guys." But as one of two female officials in the NFLs officiating development program, Thomas has a chance to break barriers in a male-dominated profession. This week, Thomas, a former college basketball player, current college official and mother of three whose full-time job is as pharmaceutical sales representative, worked with a crew of officials during Browns mini-camp. Like the players, she worked on improving her skills and honing her craft. One day, she hopes to be on the field with the pros. But not because of her gender. "I am a female, but I dont look at myself as just a female," she said. "I look at myself as an official." Thomas began her officiating career in 1996, when an NFL scout spotted her working a high school game. From there, she joined Conference USA and was invited to join the NFLs developmental program, now in its second year. Thomas worked some training camps and preseason games last season. The next step is a regular-season game, and the earliest that can happen is 2015. Its not her call, so to speak, but Thomas believes shes ready. If this week was any indication, Thomas could be on her way. "Shes done a good job," Browns coach Mike Pettine said after practice Thursday. Pettine believes its time for the league to welcome female officials. "If shes efficient and good at what she does, I have no issues with it," Pettine said. "I think the best compliment somebody paid to her was when someone said, What did you think of the female official? And they said, Theres a female official out here? I thought she was on point." Browns cornerback Joe Haden joked that Thomas was a little whistle happy. "She was calling everything," Haden said, smiling. "I couldnt snap on her. I was chilling." Thomas said her goal is to blend in. She doesnt want to stand out because of her sex — or worse, because shes not competent. Shes dedicated to being a solid, fair and mostly unseen, which is why she pulls her hair up under her cap. Still, sometimes players do a double take when they see her on the field. "I think sometimes they go What is that?" she said. "Yes, I do tuck my hair and at first I really wasnt too sure why. But I get it. We dont want to be noticed and anything I can do to blend in — I like it when I leave the field and people go I told you that was a girl." Thomas has two boys and an 18-month-old girl. She said her sons are most interested in her nabbing some NFL attire or autographs, "I cant do that," she said. Her children have never thought about their mom being anything other than an official, so they dont really grasp that she could make history as the NFLs first female official. "They just know mom officiates and its nothing foreign to them or pioneering or anything," she said. "I do this." ___ AP NFL website www.pro32.ap.org Throwbalck Dolphins Jerseys .Brooks, a three-year veteran, was slow to get up after suffering the injury during a 5-yard run by Arian Foster.Brooks limped off the field midway through the quarter and then slowly walked to the locker room a few minutes later. Cheap Dolphins Jerseys . Anderson is scheduled to have neck surgery April 8 to repair the injury, which occurred when he collided with the Celtics Gerald Wallace during a game in Boston on Jan. 3. The 6-foot-10 Pelicans forward, who had been averaging 19. http://www.cheapdolphinsjerseyselite.com/?tag=cheap-jason-sanders-jersey . Speaking on TSN Radio 1050s TSN Drive with Dave Naylor on Monday, Colangelo said he had no intention of tanking the shortened 2011-12 season, but definitely wanted a high pick in the draft. "I wish that word wasnt used for headline reasons," said Colangelo, "but the story behind it was: how can we fix the system? How can we tweak the system to make it less likely that teams are rewarded for losing records? "I do believe that if youre as transparent as we were at the time - with our season seat holders, our fans, the market place and the media - everybody knew what the plan was and what we were going through.KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Roger Federer made a victorious return Friday to the Sony Open after skipping last years tournament, and then was treated to a tribute on the stadium video screen. "It looks like a farewell video," Federer told the crowd with a laugh. "I miss one year, and you make me feel guilty." Federers back, as he showed by beating big-serving Ivo Karlovic 6-4, 7-6 (4). The Swiss star lost just three points on his serve to his 6-foot-11 (2.11-meter) opponent, and in a match with few rallies, he committed only three unforced errors. Three-time champion Novak Djokovic followed Federer onto the stadium court and into the third round, defeating Jeremy Chardy 6-4, 6-3. Defending champion Andy Murray, playing for the first time since he parted with coach Ivan Lendl, rallied to beat Matthew Ebden 3-6, 6-0, 6-1. Another three-time champ, Venus Williams, defeated Anna Schmiedlova 6-3, 6-3. Williams, the oldest player remaining in the womens draw at 33, is competing at Key Biscayne for the 15th time. "Its good to be here still as an oldster," Williams said. At 32, Federer has looked rejuvenated recently, and was the runner-up to Djokovic last week at Indian Wells. The 17-time Grand Slam champion says his new racket gives him more power, and hes moving as he did in the old days. After falling out of the top five last year for the first time since 2002, Federer returned to No. 5 this week. He led from the start against Karlovic, making the surprising choice to receive after winning the toss and earning the lone break of the match in the opening game. "I just felt like, you know, let him go first and see how it goes," Federer said. "It worked well today because I got the early break right away. That relaxed me for the rest of the first set clearly, but still he hung around." While Federer had trouble with serves from Karlovic that peaked at 138 mph (222 kph), the Croat had no cchance when returning. Cheap Dolphins Jerseys China. Federer won 49 of his 52 service points. Federer improved to 11-1 in their head-to-head -- or, in this case, head-to-shoulder. He said playing Karlovic presents unique challenges that he enjoys. "Physically its super easy. There are no long rallies," Federer said. "Its just more like a penalty shootout in soccer." The longest point was the last one, and when Karlovic pushed a backhand into the net on the 10th stroke, Federer hopped happily in celebration and threw a fist. The show of exuberance might be a hint hes keen to do well in a tournament he hasnt won since 2006. "Im very relieved and happy to be through," he said. Djokovic converted all three of his break-point chances against Chardy, who was hobbled after hurting his right ankle in the penultimate game. "When I was supposed to play my best and come up with some good serves and good shots, thats what I did in both sets," Djokovic said. On the womens side, No. 2-seeded Li Na reached the third round when Alisa Kleybanova withdrew because of a viral illness. Kleybanova, who won in doubles Thursday, is a former top 20-player mounting a career comeback from Hodgkins lymphoma. No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska, the tournament champion in 2012, defeated Romina Oprandi 6-0, 6-4. The Pole was hampered by a knee injury in her loss to Flavia Pennetta in the final at Indian Wells on Sunday, but showed no ill effects in her match Friday. "I feel much better now, obviously," she said. "Its not perfect yet, but I think those few days I had of rest in between Indian Wells and Miami really helped me." No. 6 Simona Halep, who lost to Radwanska in the semifinals at Indian Wells, withdrew because of a right toe injury. Former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki advanced with a 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 win over Monica Puig, but No. 7-seeded Jelena Jankovic was upset by American Varvara Lepchenko. Cheap Canadiens Jerseys Cheap Predators Jerseys Cheap Devils Jerseys Cheap Islanders Jerseys Cheap Rangers Jerseys Cheap Senators Jerseys Cheap Flyers Jerseys Cheap Penguins Jerseys Cheap Sharks Jerseys Cheap Blues Jerseys Cheap Lightning Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Cheap Canucks Jerseys Cheap Golden Knights Jerseys Cheap Capitals Jerseys Cheap Winnipeg Jets Jerseys ' ' '