Getty Members of the Buffalo Bills huddle during a snowy game in Orchard Park.
The Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins will likely be facing some extreme weather conditions when they face off on December 17 — and some fans are not happy about it.
The Bills (10-3) are hosting the Dolphins (8-5) on Saturday in a game that could determine the winner of the AFC East, but it’s the weather that could be taking center stage. A major snowstorm is expected to hit Buffalo starting on Friday night and last through Saturday, with significant accumulation expected during game time.
That has left some fans upset that the league has not considered moving the game back to Sunday, when the conditions would not be so dangerous for those traveling to the game.
Game On for Bills and Dolphins
As the Buffalo News reported, the brunt of this weekend’s storm is expected to hit the city’s southern suburbs — which puts a bullseye on Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park. Snow is expected to start falling late on Friday night, with a lull during the day on Saturday before intensifying again during game time.
Andy Major, the vice president of operations and guest experience for the Bills, told the Buffalo News that the team is ready for some major snow removal operations on the field during the game, but fans could face a big challenge when trying to go home.
“We’re concentrating on making sure that the game can be played, that the lines are clear, per NFL rules, and that we finish this game, and everybody leaves happy, hopefully with a big Bills’ victory,” Major said. “But then postgame, when fans are leaving the stadium and go into their cars, and there’s a foot of snow in the parking lots, that becomes a big challenge.”
Orchard Park has been upgraded to a Lake Effect Snow Warning, set to kick in Friday night & run through the weekend. A narrow but intense plume of accumulation could yield more than a foot of snow where squalls persist. Welcome to WNY, @MiamiDolphins #billsmafia
That has left some fans angry that the league has not moved the game back to Sunday. The league flexed the game to primetime, taking place on Saturday at 8:15 p.m., and some fans hoped they might push it back to Sunday night instead.
One fan noted that the league has already altered a Bills game due to weather, moving their matchup with the Cleveland Browns to Detroit after a major snowstorm left more than seven feet of snow in Orchard Park.
“NFL moved a snow game to Detroit earlier this year but since this is a showcase game on Saturday night on NFL network —they’re not moving it from Buffalo. Pretty unfair and unreasonable,” the person tweeted.
Dolphins Face Questions on Snow Game
The Dolphins faced some scrutiny about how they might perform in the frigid conditions, especially after the measures they took to stay warm next week. As SI.com’s Madison Williams reported, the Dolphins brought heaters for their sideline for their game against the Los Angeles Chargers last week, even though the temperature hovered around 55 degrees.
Might be chilly tomorrow. 🥶
But Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa said he has played in snow before and said he’s just trying to focus on the game.
“Could be snowing, could rain, I don’t know,” Tagovailoa said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “It’s a mindset thing, really, and if I’m too focused and worried about, Is it too cold? Can I grab the ball or not? Then I’m focused on the wrong things and it’ll be hard to play that way.”