Bills-Steelers playoff game postponed to Monday, 'will not be pushed back again'
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) -- The Buffalo Bills playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Highmark Stadium has been moved to 4:30 p.m. Monday due to the significant winter storm forecasted to impact Western New York throughout the weekend.
The game was originally scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday. It will still be televised on CBS.
"It's all part of our critical efforts to keep New Yorkers, motorists and fans safe from this wildly unpredictable storm," Gov. Kathy Hochul said Saturday.
Hochul added in a Sunday press conference that the game "will not be pushed back again."
Near-whiteout conditions are expected in Orchard Park on Sunday, with high winds, frigid wind chills and blowing lake-effect snow all in play. States of Emergency in Western New York as well as Erie County are currently active as a result of the storm.
Hochul said that she consulted with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell about the decision, who "shares our concern that safety should be the top priority."
"We want our Bills to win, but we don't want 60 to 70 thousand people traveling to the football game in what is going to be horrible conditions," Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said. "[Law enforcement officials] need to be assisting in the middle of a snowstorm, helping those in need, not directing traffic at a football stadium ... This is something we all agreed on."
The Bills said in a statement that the decision to move the game was made "in the best interest of public safety, and with the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers, as the region prepares for the storm."
In addition to the game being postponed, a travel ban will go into effect for Erie County starting at 9 p.m. Saturday and it will last until at least 6 a.m. Sunday.
While the Bills game was moved, the Buffalo Sabres' 4 p.m. Saturday game against the Vancouver Canucks at KeyBank Center will play on as scheduled. The Sabres' Monday game against the San Jose Sharks was moved from 1 p.m. to noon to account for the Bills game at 4:30.
Bills parking lots will open at 12:25 p.m. Monday.
This is not the first the Bills have had a game altered due to severe weather. Last regular season, Buffalo had to play a home game against the Cleveland Browns in Detroit due to significant snowfall in Orchard Park. A similar situation unfolded in November 2014, when a game against the New York Jets was also moved to Detroit due to snow.
Mother Nature has also played a role in altering playoff games in the past. A Chiefs vs. Steelers Divisional matchup in 2017 was changed from a 1 p.m. kickoff to 8:20 p.m. due to an ice storm in Kansas City.
This is a developing story, check back for updates.