{
  "id": 20003025,
  "title": "Ground stop results in side judge Don Willard serving as referee for two games on Sunday",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/14/ground-stop-results-in-side-judge-don-willard-serving-as-referee-for",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-11-14T15:34:42.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/ground-stop-results-side-judge-153442243.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The NFL has announced changes to officiating assignments for Week 10 games due to a nationwide ground stop impacting air travel. Three backup referees, including side judge Don Willard, will serve as referees in different games on Sunday. Don Willard will officiate the Dolphins-Colts game at 1:00 p.m. ET, followed by the Cincinnati game after a 109-mile trip. This situation creates the potential first in NFL history of a referee working two games in a single day. The announcement does not clarify the roles of referees for the three affected games or the assignments of other referees from their regular schedules.",
  "summary": "Flight disruptions result in multiple changes to Week 10 officiating assignments.",
  "key_points": [
    "Ground stop affects NFL officiating assignments",
    "Don Willard serves as referee for two games Sunday",
    "Potential first in NFL history of referee working two games"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}