NFL moves Sunday game out of Buffalo

With as much as 4 feet of snow expected in the Buffalo area between Thursday night and Saturday, the NFL has moved the Bills’ Sunday game against the Cleveland Browns to Ford Field in Detroit.

NOAA’s Weather Prediction Center is calling for “extreme impacts” in the Buffalo area that will cause “substantial disruptions to daily life” and “extremely dangerous or impossible driving conditions.”

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The forecast for the scheduled noon CST Sunday kickoff of the Browns-Bills game had been 19 degrees and snowing with 19 mph winds from the west-northwest at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York.

In a press release announcing its decision, the NFL said it made the change “due to public safety concerns and out of an abundance of caution in light of the ongoing weather emergency in western New York.”

The Browns-Bills game will retain its noon kickoff time.

The Detroit Lions play on the road on Sunday. They’ll be squaring off against the New York Giants in East Rutherford, New Jersey, while the Browns and Bills are playing on their field.

The NFL also moved a game out of Buffalo because of weather concerns in 2014. The Bills beat the New York Jets 38-3 in that contest, which also was played at Ford Field.

Buffalo has only one player from an Alabama high school or college on its roster – cornerback Siran Neal, who played at Eufaula High School and Jacksonville State.

Cleveland has nine players with Alabama football roots:

· Amari Cooper, wide receiver, Alabama

· Jerome Ford, running back, Alabama

· Miller Forristall, tight end, Alabama (who is a member of the practice squad)

· Ronnie Harrison, safety, Alabama

· Chris Hubbard, offensive tackle, UAB

· Chester Rogers, wide receiver, Lee-Huntsville (who is a member of the practice squad)

· Anthony Schwartz, wide receiver, Auburn

· Jedrick Wills Jr., offensive tackle, Alabama

· Alex Wright, defensive end, Elba, UAB

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.

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