Super Bowl 2014: NFL Must Make Early Announcement for Potential Saturday Game

After a blizzard of epic proportions rocked the East Coast last week, the NFL would be wise to make a contingency plan to have Super Bowl XLVIII played either on Saturday or after Sunday in case of bad weather.

Next year's big game is set to take place at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Feb. 2, 2014.

But according to Daniel Kaplan, Terry Lefton and John Ourand of the SportsBusiness Journal, the NFL is developing a plan to potentially play the game either a day earlier or after Sunday should weather conditions end up threatening the start time of the Super Bowl.

The NFL knew that it was taking a risk by having the Super Bowl be played in the New York/New Jersey area since MetLife Stadium doesn't have a roof to protect players and fans from the elements.

Normally, the NFL holds the Super Bowl in a dome and/or warm-weather location.

A stark reminder of this risk was seen this past week when the East Coast was blanketed with a foot of snow or more in some areas. Weather conditions such as this would be a disaster next year, as it would render travel to and from the stadium impossible.

Clearly, this hasn't been officially announced as a definite plan yet, but if the NFL does go ahead and make this decision, it must make it be known as early as possible.

Many fans from out of state may plan on arriving in New York or New Jersey a day before the game or even the day of.

If that is the case and the game is either moved up one day or pushed back, fans may not be able to get into town on time to attend the Super Bowl, or they will be forced to extend their stay, making it far more expensive.

And if airports close and no flights are coming into New York or New Jersey right before the game, that would make it even more difficult for fans to arrive.

Furthermore, hotels in town must also be prepared to change reservation dates if it so happens that the fans staying there have to move their plans up a day or beyond the original date.

If hotels aren't ready, they could end up leaving a lot of people out in the cold, and that would make for one angry NFL fanbase.

The idea to move the Super Bowl up one day in order to avoid bad weather is a great one, but the NFL must make it known as soon as possible in order to give all involved parties enough time to adjust in the event that it becomes necessary.