Breaking news: The Bills gives a devastating update as they prepare for a lake-effect storm that might dump over two feet of snow.
As the Buffalo Bills finished their final practice of the week inside Highmark Stadium on Friday, a small coating of snow started to blanket the team’s facilities.
This was maybe a sneak peek at what the weather would be like on Sunday night when the AFC East-leading Bills meet the San Francisco 49ers, as a lake-effect storm alert is already in force. According to the most recent estimate, starting late Saturday afternoon, 20 to 30 inches of snow are expected to fall during a 12- to 16-hour period.
During his two seasons at Michigan State, rookie receiver Keon Coleman shrugged and said he was used to playing in the snow.
Though not to the same extent as the storms that may strike the Buffalo region blowing in from neighboring Lake Erie, it does snow in landlocked East Lansing.
“Those who are attempting to travel to the football game will find this disturbing. We don’t anticipate a postponement of the game or anything like. At a press conference, Erie County executive Mark Poloncarz declared, “The game will continue.” We’ve played games colder than that before. All you need to do is dress accordingly. People must thus be ready. This is the season’s first true cold. This is unlike anything we’ve experienced this year.
On Friday, a dump truck was laying salt on roads and parking lots in preparation for the storm, while plows and backhoes were already arriving at the stadium. Without specifying if or when they might be required, the Bills sent out a request for volunteers to sign up as potential snow shovelers.
For the Buffalo area and the Bills, this is nothing new.
The NFL postponed the Bills’ home game against Pittsburgh in the wild-card playoffs by one day in January due to a lake-effect storm. The storm’s worst effects persisted throughout the intended game time, and a driving restriction that accompanied it made it difficult to evacuate the stadium in time for kickoff, necessitating the swap.
Due to a lake-effect storm, the Bills’ November home game versus Cleveland was moved to Detroit two years ago.
“We’re attempting to maintain control,” coach Sean McDermott stated on Friday.
“You guys are aware that with the weather coming off the lake and everything else, things change around here quite rapidly. Do our best, then,” he continued, adding that the weather’s unpredictability adds another level of planning.
With a victory, the Bills will win the AFC East for the seventh time in a row. They are 9-2, their best start since 1992.
