Chiefs vs. Bucs Remains on Schedule; Will Move to Vikings' Stadium If Necessary
September 28, 2022
The NFL confirmed Sunday's Week 4 game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers remains on track to take place at Raymond James Stadium in Florida despite Hurricane Ian.
Jeff Miller, the league's executive vice president of communications, provided the update Wednesday and noted the Sunday Night Football matchup would be moved to the Minnesota Vikings' U.S. Bank Stadium if local authorities determine it should be relocated, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
The Bucs are spending the practice week at the Miami Dolphins' facilities after they relocated to the southeastern part of Florida on Tuesday.
Hurricane Ian, which has nearly reached Category 5 status, was on track to make landfall on Florida's west coast on Wednesday, according to CNN.
The Weather Channel forecast calls for rain and wind in Tampa on Thursday before conditions start to clear throughout Friday. A mostly sunny weekend is expected.
With weather conditions slated to improve, the ability to play Sunday's game at Raymond James Stadium likely depends on the extent of the damage after the hurricane moves out.
"Our thoughts and hearts go out to everybody in Tampa that's still here," Bucs head coach Todd Bowles told reporters Wednesday. "Hoping they recover well and it doesn't hit them very hard. That's the biggest thing. What we do is really small entertainment for people that go through a lot of rough things."
It's unclear why the game would be moved to Minnesota over Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. Andy Slater of Fox Sports 640 reported Monday the Dolphins' home stadium was made available to the NFL as an option for Sunday night.
The Dolphins are on the road the next two weeks, facing the Cincinnati Bengals and New York Jets. The next event at their stadium is a college football game between North Carolina and Miami on Oct. 8.
Regardless, U.S. Bank Stadium is also available Sunday with the Vikings in London to face the New Orleans Saints.
The NFL didn't provide a timetable for a final decision about the Bucs-Chiefs game, which features a premier quarterback matchup between Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes.