Natural forces already have postponed one NFL game and are threatening to affect another.
The Jacksonville Jaguars are scheduled to host the Tennessee Titans at EverBank Field on Sunday in their home opener. But Hurricane Irma ripped through Florida this weekend, causing flooding and damage and in around the stadium that could put that contest in jeopardy, according to The Associated Press.
Officials currently are assessing the damage at EverBank Field, Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone told the AP, and are considering two options if the stadium isn’t fit for play by Sunday: Relocate the contest to Tennessee in a swap of home games (the Jags play the Titans again on Dec. 31) or postpone the game until Week 8, when both teams have scheduled byes.
“The first step right now is to make sure our families are fine,” Marrone said, via the AP. “The second step is to make sure we can get back to Jacksonville. The next step is where our work is going to be done and then the next step, I would believe, is if the stadium is safe and things of that nature.”
The NFL already postponed a Week 1 matchup between the Miami Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, pushing their matchup at Raymond James Stadium to Week 11 due to the impending storm. A swap of home games seems more plausible for the Jags and Titans, as Nashville will feel some effects of Irma but should be fit to host an NFL game this weekend if Jacksonville cannot.
The NFL still isn’t close to making a decision about Sunday’s Jaguars-Titans game, a league spokesman told the AP, but it appears conditions had improved around EverBank Field as of Tuesday.
Thumbnail photo via Jasen Vinlove/USA TODAY Sports Images
