The nationwide shutdown that resulted in the shutdown of the overhead system impacted NFL referee assignments for Sunday games. And although the league has announced specific changes that will result in non-umpires serving as referees for four games on Sunday (with side judge Don Willard functioning two matches on the same day), other adjustments have not been officially announced.
There will surely be others. For now, one game will be shorthanded.
Via Netflix’s Tom Pelissero, the Panthers-Saints game I won’t have a proofreading assistant.
These tasks will be handled by the league office. Which will put a strain on the usual resources there, especially in the 1:00 p.m. ET games cluster. (Panthers-Saints is one of seven games to be played in this window.)
Given that the league has otherwise adjusted Week 10 assignments to keep officials within driving distance of their hometowns, it is likely that existing rosters will be significantly altered. Which would introduce unfamiliarity and otherwise complicate efforts to get calls correct consistently.
With no prior announcement from the league as to the extent of the changes, they will not be known until the NFL releases official playbooks for Sunday’s contests.
Gn sports
