WASHINGTON – Count the Chicago Bears among the thousands of travelers whose pre-holiday schedules were thrown into disarray by the snowstorm that pummeled the East Coast.
The Bears spent Saturday waiting for a break in the storm sufficient to allow them to travel to Baltimore for their game today against the Ravens, which the NFL previously had moved back from 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. to allow more time for snow removal efforts in and around M&T Bank Stadium.
The snow created scheduling problems for the NFL and travel-related headaches for teams trying to reach East Coast cities for games today. The 49ers-Eagles game today in Philadelphia also was moved from 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m.
The biggest problem, though, was having a visiting team in Baltimore.
Members of the Bears’ traveling party boarded a charter plane at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport Friday night and sat on a runway for about two hours before the flight was canceled because of the snowy conditions in Baltimore, the Chicago Tribune reported.
A passenger told the Tribune there also was a mechanical issue with the plane involved, and the window of opportunity for departing for BWI Airport closed before there was enough time for passengers to switch planes.
The Bears planned to try again Saturday to make the trip. The team’s plan, as of Saturday afternoon, was to leave Chicago on Saturday night and arrive in Baltimore, if all went well, between 11 p.m. and midnight.
The Bears’ travel problems perhaps could provide a competitive advantage for the Ravens, who are in the race for a wild-card playoff berth in the AFC with a record of 7-6. The Bears are 5-8.
NFL teams usually travel on Saturday for a Sunday game, but the Bears attempted to make the trip to Baltimore on Friday because of the weather forecast.
A Ravens spokesman said Saturday that 700 workers were clearing snow from the stadium. The Ravens announced Friday that the workers would stay on the club levels of the stadium and would continue their snow-removal efforts until today.
The Ravens announced Friday that the starting time of the game had been switched on the recommendation of city officials.
