The Buffalo Bills will be facing two formidable opponents this week — the league-leading Detroit Lions, and Mother Nature.
Enduring the second major winter storm in a matter of weeks, the Bills took to social media on Dec. 12 to announce a significant change to their practice schedule this week.
“Today’s practice has been canceled & the team is meeting virtually due to inclement weather,” the team shared in a post on X.
The change could leave the Bills facing an unusual situation, preparing to face the league’s top offense without a full practice all week.
Dangerous Conditions Lead to Practice Change
The Bills were forced to change their practice plans due to a significant lake-effect snowstorm that battered parts of Buffalo. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced in a post on X that several counties were under states of emergency, including Erie County where the Bills play. The storm was expected to dump several feet of snow in the most persistent bands, with heavy wind and whiteout conditions.
As ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg reported, the southern suburb of Orchard Park, where the Bills play, already had 30 inches of snow by midday on Thursday with close to a foot more expected before the end of the day.
Getzenberg added that the change to Thursday’s practice could leave the Bills without a full practice all week leading up to their game against the Lions.
“The Bills (10-3) held a walkthrough on Wednesday. Friday — when the snow is expected to end — will be the team’s first full practice, although it is typically a shorter practice to end the week,” Getzenberg.
The Bills were also hit with a snow storm at the beginning of December that dumped several feet of snow, leading the team to seek snow shovelers to clear the stadium for their game against the San Francisco 49ers.
The lack of a full, in-person practice this week could pose a challenge to the Bills, who are coming off a 44-42 loss to the Los Angeles Rams and will face the league’s top offense in Detroit. The Bills already clinched their fifth-straight AFC East title, but are chasing the Kansas City Chiefs for the top overall seed in the AFC and the bye week that comes with it.
Bills Familiar With Weather Changes
The Bills have been impacted by weather many times in recent years, with their wild-card round playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers last season moved by a day while the region was hit with another major storm.
As Getzenberg noted, the Bills have also been forced to relocate another game due to a blizzard.
“Ahead of facing the Lions in 2022, the Bills had a game against the Cleveland Browns moved to Detroit due to weather conditions and safety concerns in Orchard Park,” Getzenberg noted.
The Bills were also forced to stay in Chicago following a game on Christmas Eve in 2022 while another storm bringing fierce winds hit Buffalo. The team flew into nearby Rochester, getting a state police escort down the Thruway back to Buffalo on Christmas Day.
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