NFL Calls In Backup Referees as Flight Chaos Hits Week 10

The NFL has called in backup referees for four Week 10 games after Friday's nationwide flight disruption left officiating crews stranded across the country.

The league announced the changes on Saturday, reassigning officials to games within driving distance of their hometowns. Three officials who normally work in other positions will step into the referee role for the weekend.

Duane Heydt will referee the Carolina Panthers against the New Orleans Saints, and Barry Anderson takes charge of the Jacksonville Jaguars against the Tennessee Titans. Don Willard will referee two games in one day: the Miami Dolphins against the Indianapolis Colts at 1:00 PM ET, then the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Cincinnati Bengals at 8:20 PM ET. Willard will drive about an hour and a half from Indianapolis to Cincinnati between the two games. The Steelers had originally been assigned Clete Blakeman.

The disruption began on Friday afternoon, when the Federal Aviation Administration halted departures across the country after a failure in its telecommunications systems. The ground stop was lifted at about 8:15 PM ET, but more than 12,000 flights were cancelled across Friday and Saturday, and crews travelling commercially were left unable to reach their assignments.

The league said in a statement that it had adjusted its officiating assignments for Week 10 games because of the ongoing nationwide impact to air travel, reassigning officials to games within driving distance of their hometowns.

Every one of the league's 17 officiating crews has a designated backup referee who trains throughout the season for exactly this situation. The Detroit Lions' game against the New England Patriots in Munich is unaffected, with both teams already in Germany for the 9:30 AM ET kick-off.

The changes are the latest sign of how far Friday's disruption has reached into the weekend's sport, with teams, broadcast crews and officials all forced to rework their travel plans at short notice.