NFL to Reschedule Super Bowl? Bad Weather Could Push the Big Game Back a Week
The NFL is currently developing contingency plans in case the Super Bowl is affected by inclement weather and one of the leading options proposed thus far would be to reschedule the championship game.
"I don't know that I would consider it to be a nightmare," Frank Supovitz, the NFL's senior vice president of events, said Wednesday during a press conference. "I would consider it to be complicated. There are a lot of people who are already working those plans through - the governmental side, the public safety side, security, stadium operations, concessions, merchandise, the department of transportation."
Discussions regarding the impact weather could have been a main focus since owners voted in 2010 to have the Super Bowl played in New Jersey at MetLife stadium.
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Officials stated that they are prepared to handle some snow given that there are 821 trucks and 60,000 tons of salt at the ready, but a major weather system could prove too much for crews preparing for the big game.
"Watching NFL football in the snow is really romantic. It's really great and exciting," he said. "It's also a rite of passage for you as a fan to do it at least once. And this is a Super Bowl, right? I think it's going to be amazing. It will be better if it snows a little bit during the game. It would make it that much more memorable."
Still, whether forecasts will be watched closely as the event draws near with several different options being discussed.
"There are contingency plans for multiple different days," Supovitz said. "There is the potential of a move-up scenario, there is the potential of a move-back scenario, depending on what we are seeing coming. It could potentially be on a Saturday or it could be on the Monday or Tuesday. There is also a scenario where we could play the following weekend, a scenario that is incredibly unlikely. You're dealing with progressively infinitesimal possibilities."
Current estimates stated that roughly half a million people will come visit the region the week of the Super Bowl with 80,000 fans expected at MetLife Stadium on Feb. 2.
