The NFL has rescheduled the Buffalo Bills’ wild-card playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers from Sunday to Monday due to a potentially hazardous winter storm forecasted for the Buffalo area this weekend.

Governor Kathy Hochul of New York and the NFL stated that the reason for the delay is due to concerns about public safety. This is due to an anticipated snowfall of up to 2 feet in the Buffalo area within a period of 24 hours or more, starting on Saturday.

The NFL and the Buffalo Bills released a joint statement stating that the game will be moved to Monday in cooperation with New York Gov. Kathy Hochul for the safety of the public and in consideration of the impending storm.

Hochul announced that she initiated discussions with the NFL on Thursday regarding the potential rescheduling of the game due to a hazardous storm. As a native of the Buffalo area, Hochul concluded her press conference by exclaiming, “Go, Bills!”

Mark Poloncarz, the Erie County Executive, expressed his desire for the Bills to emerge victorious in their football game. However, he also expressed concern over the potential travel of 60,000 to 70,000 individuals to the game in unfavorable conditions during a news conference held in the Buffalo suburbs.

Authorities urged citizens to avoid using roads after nightfall and implemented a prohibition on driving at 9 p.m. The match will be relocated to Highmark Stadium on Monday at 4:30 p.m.

The forecast for the Buffalo area called for heavy snow and winds gusting as high as 65 mph (105 kph) Saturday, with 1 to 2 feet (.03 to 0.6 meters) or more of snow eventually piling up. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning lasting through 7 a.m. Monday.

Strong gusts of wind and swirling snow started to impact the region in the late afternoon of Saturday.

The majority of the storm was predicted to occur in a small area of lake-effect snow over Buffalo’s southern suburbs, including Orchard Park where the Bills play.

The intensity of the storm is predicted to decrease by Sunday evening. Monday’s weather outlook predicts potential snowfall throughout the day and increasing in the evening, with a maximum temperature of 19 degrees Fahrenheit (negative 7 Celsius) and wind gusts reaching 29 miles per hour (47 kilometers per hour).

According to Poloncarz, postponing the game allows sheriff’s deputies to be available for storm-related emergencies instead of their usual duties related to Bills games. There were concerns about the safety of Steelers fans traveling to Buffalo in dangerous weather conditions.

The Steelers have rescheduled their travel arrangements and will now be traveling to Buffalo on Sunday.

An individual who was informed about the talks between the NFL and state representatives stated to The Associated Press that the league mentioned the option of relocating the game to Atlanta before ultimately deciding to postpone it by one day. The source requested anonymity from the AP as the conversations were intended to remain confidential.

Brian McCarthy, a spokesperson for the NFL, stated that it is standard protocol for the league to have backup locations in case a game needs to be relocated, but did not confirm if Atlanta was one of those locations.

According to him, the top concern of the NFL is always to maintain public safety and not take away resources from authorities that could harm the local efforts in the affected regions.

Following the NFL’s announcement, the Pittsburgh Penguins of the NHL rescheduled the start time of their home game on Monday against the Seattle Kraken from 6 p.m. to 1 p.m. in order to prevent a scheduling conflict with the Bills-Steelers game. Similarly, the Sabres’ faceoff time for their home game against the San Jose Sharks on Monday in Buffalo was adjusted from 1 p.m. to noon.

The Bills have experience with altering their schedule due to weather conditions. In 2022, a lake effect storm resulted in Buffalo’s home game against Cleveland being relocated to Detroit in November. A month later, a blizzard caused the Bills to postpone their journey home, requiring them to spend the night in Chicago on Christmas Eve.

While NFL postseason matches have been rescheduled in the past for different reasons related to scheduling or to include additional games to determine tiebreakers, this is only the third instance where weather has directly impacted the decision.

Due to the wintry conditions in Kansas City, the NFL rescheduled the AFC divisional playoff game between Pittsburgh and the Chiefs from 1 p.m. to 8:20 p.m. in January 2017.

In 1932, the league introduced a “playoff” match to resolve a tie in the rankings between the Portsmouth Spartans and Chicago Bears. Harsh frigid conditions and significant snowfall resulted in the game being held indoors at Chicago Stadium, with the Bears emerging victorious with a score of 9-0 on an 80-yard field.

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Peltz provided information from New York City. The report was also contributed to by AP Sports Writer Will Graves in Pittsburgh.

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The latest news and updates from the National Football League can be found at AP NFL.

Source: wral.com