ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — While the NFL has already decided to move the Week 11 game between the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns on Sunday from Orchard Park, New York, to Detroit, now the league finds itself facing a new issue: getting the Bills to the game.
As of Friday afternoon, the Bills had yet to leave Buffalo, which has already begun to experience a lake-effect snowstorm that is expected to bring multiple feet of snow in the coming days. And when it comes to getting the Bills out of New York and to Detroit by Sunday, that could prove problematic, with a travel ban already in place for a portion of the city.
According to CBS Sports' Josina Anderson, a league source noted growing concern about the Bills' ability to make it out of Buffalo in time for Sunday's game.
"This is a major impact. There's currently a travel ban. Still waiting to hear on timing of today's zoom meeting," the league source told Anderson. "Snow is coming down hard right now. I don't know what's the contingency if everyone can't make it to the airport or we can't fly out."
According to Cameron Wolfe of the NFL Network, the Bills don't plan on traveling to Detroit until Saturday, as they would for any other road game (Buffalo will still technically be the home team on Sunday). That could leave the team with little margin for error when it comes to its travel plans, especially if the storm continues to intensify.
Already, the Bills have canceled their previously scheduled practice on Friday, opting instead to hold a virtual meeting via Zoom. Meanwhile, multiple players -- as well as the team's official Twitter account -- have taken to social media to share scenes that illustrate just how difficult it might be to leave Buffalo in the next 24 hours.