Well, it happened. For days, the weather reports were screaming that the Buffalo Bills vs. Pittsburgh Steelers game near near Orchard Park, New York, were be pretty much unplayable. AccuWeather even said that “life-threatening travel risks” were expected for the Buffalo Bills game on Sunday (Jan. 14) Now, the NFL has finally responded. They’re postponing the Bills-Steelers playoff game to Monday (Jan. 15) due to the major snowstorm.
According to AccuWeather expert meteorologists, “dangerous lake-effect snow band, which can dump one to three feet of snow near Orchard Park and the Buffalo Bills Highmark Stadium from Saturday night through Monday morning, including around the time of the scheduled football game on Sunday.” The Buffalo Bills were even offering $20 an hour to those who could com and help shovel snow by Highmark Stadium before the game. What a mess, right?
The Bills-Steelers game was originally scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday (Jan. 14). It will still air on CBS, just on Monday.
“It’s all part of our critical efforts to keep New Yorkers, motorists and fans safe from this wildly unpredictable storm,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.
Before moving the game, Hochul said that she spoke with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell about the decision and that he shared “our concern that safety should be the top priority.”
“We want our Bills to win, but we don’t want 60 to 70 thousand people traveling to the football game in what is going to be horrible conditions,” Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said in a statement. “[Law enforcement officials] need to be assisting in the middle of a snowstorm, helping those in need, not directing traffic at a football stadium … This is something we all agreed on.”
The Buffalo Bills also put out a statement saying that the decision to move the game was made “in the best interest of public safety, and with the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers, as the region prepares for the storm.” It’s also in the best interest of the Bills and Steelers players not freezing their fingers off.
But, that’s not all. On top of the playoff game being postponed, a travel ban will go into effect for Erie County beginning at 9 p.m. Saturday (Jan. 13) and it will last until at least 6 a.m. Sunday (Jan. 14).
Isn’t it time for the Bills to get an indoor stadium? Last regular season, the Bills were forced to move a home game against the Cleveland Browns to Detroit because of major snowfall in Orchard Park. Back in November 2014, the Bills also had to move a game against the New York Jets to Detroit because of winter weather.
The Miami Dolphins vs. Kansas City Chiefs game Saturday night (Jan. 13) in Kansas City also looks like it will have brutal weather. The game starts at 8 p.m. ET, and the air temperature at kickoff is expected to be around 0 degrees Fahrenheit with a wind chill of -22 degrees, according to Weather.com. How are players used to playing in Miami going to deal with the cold? It’s going to be a doozy, for certain. But, I always love a good snow globe football game, so bring it on.