Growing up, many kids often hear stories of their grandparents or parents walking to school in waist-deep snow, the Buffalo Bills lived it Saturday.
The 77″ of snow that fell on Orchard Park was historic. A snowstorm that began on Thursday brought the city of Buffalo to a standstill and created a huge mess for the NFL and the Bills organization.
Today, the Bills will host the Browns as planned, albeit in Detroit but the fact they made it to Detroit is an impressive feat as well and it took a lot of walking in waist-deep snow to make it happen.
The Bills outlined this incredible story of what it took to pull it all together. As a Miami Dolphins fan I poked my fun over the course of a few days at the franchise because that’s what rivals do but how they pulled it together is pretty impressive.
It took an entire organization to make it all happen and even members of the local law enforcement to get it done. Volunteer snow plow drivers took to the streets trying to clear emergency paths and when possible, neighborhood residence entry points but the snow was too deep that even the plows often failed.
The City of Good Neighbors always comes through. 💙#OneBuffalo | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/8PJydmfhDQ
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 19, 2022
When it became clear that many of the players wouldn’t be able to get out of their driveways, the Buffalo Bills coaches and staff took the roads to pick them up. As the Bills said in the article they posted, linked above, they got as far as they could before they had to wait.
Players were greeted by fans who were trying to dig themselves out of the mess. Paths were cleared for players to walk to a clearing to meet team drivers. In some cases, in many cases, the Bills players walked the best they could through the snow. In some cases, as the Bills point out, 1/2 and 3/4 miles were often the case.
https://twitter.com/tdots25/status/1594025423205179393?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The Bills figured it out and made it work and later in the evening, the Bills finally boarded a plane for Detroit. On social media, there were questions about why the Bills waited so long to leave for Detroit knowing the game was moved. Logistics, getting a plane and crew, getting the gear ready to go and moved, along with all the other things that go into travel isn’t something you simply wave your hand to make magically appear.
For now, it’s behind the players who will now play a game while their wives and families are left behind. In many cases unable to leave their house. More snow is predicted today. Then the Bills have to return home unless they decide to find a way to stay in Detroit for their Thanksgiving game against the Lions on Thursday.
As a Dolphins fan, we see these types of moves quite a bit when it is hurricane season. We know how bad it can be and 77″ of snow is no joke. The Buffalo Bills lost a home game but 56,000 tickets were sold to Bills, Browns, and Lions fans in less than 24 hours so the game will still be heavily repped by Bills Mafia.
For the league, it’s a win just to play the game. For the Buffalo Bills, it’s a bittersweet distraction.