The NFL moved Sunday’s game between the Browns and Bills from Buffalo’s Highmark Stadium to Detroit due to a then-incoming lake-effect snowstorm. Now, the storm has arrived, and we can see why the game was moved.
Pictures flooded Twitter Friday morning showing the Bills’ Highmark Stadium buried under several feet of snow.
As can be seen in the above pics, a significant portion of the 3-6 feet of snow expected to hit the Buffalo area between Thursday and Saturday night has already hit with considerable effect. One would think that the knowledge that the storm would hit on Thursday night, coupled with the announcement that the game had been moved to Detroit, would have led the Bills to flee Buffalo before the storm hitting.
Well, one would be wrong.
See, the Bills are still there. They canceled their practice on Friday but planned to fly out of Buffalo on Saturday. Why they would wait until the middle of a snowstorm to plan a flight out of town is a question that needs an answer. However, the game could still end up not being played if the Bills can’t get out of town.
The Bills wanted to relocate the game to avoid diverting city emergency services from the community.
“The decision to move the game to Detroit has everything to do about safety,” Bills COO Ron Raccuia said via the New York Post. “Safety first has been what we’ve been talking about here, really, for the last 48 to 72 hours.”
However, flying the team out in the middle of a snowstorm is not exactly safe either.
And, of course, the frantic scrambling to contend with the winter storm has once again led to fans questioning why Buffalo doesn’t have a domed stadium. Of course, that is a worthwhile question. However, football is a game meant to be played outside. Also, clearing the field and seats is a job for muscles and machines that can be relatively easily done with stadium staff and volunteers. The game would likely still have been canceled, even if the stadium did have a dome, due to the travel hazards posed to fans as they ventured to and from the game.