The start time of the Saturday’s game between the Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans will be pushed back an hour due to a power emergency in the Nashville area.
The game was scheduled to start at 1 p.m. ET, but Nashville mayor John Cooper asked for a delay because of the high demand for energy.
CBS will televise the game at 2 p.m. ET.
The request from City Hall came as the region grapples with bitterly cold temperatures that have resulted in a high demand for energy. As a result. the power supply has been overwhelmed, and the Tennessee Valley Authority told local power companies to implement intermittent service interruptions to stretch the supply.
As of 11:30 a.m. ET, the temperature in Nashville was 17 degrees with a real-feel temperature of 4 degrees.
“I’ve been informed that TVA’s unilateral rolling blackouts will continue. All non-essential businesses should reduce power usage. I’ve asked the
@Titans to postpone their 12pm (local time) game in solidarity with our neighbors,” Cooper tweeted.
Winter Storm Elliott has sent temperatures plummeting from coast to coast, and at least 12 people have died, mostly in car accidents.
Seven of the eight NFL games set for 1 p.m. ET are expected to begin with temperatures below 30 degrees. The exception is the game between the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis, which will be played in a dome on a day where the forecasted high for the day is 4 degrees.
The Titans (7-7) host the Houston Texans (1-12-1) in a crucial AFC South game. Tennessee has lost four straight games and now has the Jacksonville Jaguars (7-8) nipping at their heels for the division title.
–Field Level Media