Wet weather could put the Bengals’ first preseason game in jeopardy Thursday night, and the NFL has a pretty clear playbook if storms get too close to Paycor Stadium.
Cincinnati is set to host the Detroit Lions on Aug. 13 with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m., but more rain and storms are forecast in the evening across the Greater Cincinnati region. That raises the possibility of a delay - or, if conditions are severe enough, a cancellation.
The league is more likely to cancel a preseason game than push it to another date. Since there’s no regular-season or playoff makeup window to worry about, the NFL can simply scrap the game if the weather turns bad enough.
It already took that route with the 2024 Hall of Fame Game in Canton. If the Bengals-Lions matchup gets canceled, the team may issue refunds to ticketholders and would announce those plans after the decision.
Lightning is the biggest trigger to watch. If a strike is spotted within 10 miles of Paycor Stadium, the game must be delayed for at least 30 minutes.
Heavy rain can also force a delay if the field becomes unplayable. Fans would be kept updated through the scoreboard at the stadium and on social media.
The NFL Rulebook says a game can be delayed if it is “imminently threatened” by an emergency, including severe weather, flooding, lightning or power issues.
This isn’t new territory for the Bengals this summer. Multiple practices during training camp have already been delayed or moved indoors because of rain and lightning.
Weather has interrupted NFL games before, too. The 2025 NFL Kickoff Game between Dallas and Philadelphia was delayed by lightning, while the Buffalo Bills have had two games affected since 2022 because of heavy snowstorms. One regular-season game was moved to Detroit in 2022, and a 2024 playoff game was postponed by a day.
Bengals fans also know what it looks like when a game disappears from the schedule entirely. The home game against Buffalo on Jan. 2, 2023 was canceled and not resumed after the onfield medical emergency involving Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin. Hamlin is sponsoring scholarships for Cincinnati students.
If Thursday’s game does get wiped out, the Bengals’ next preseason game is Aug. 22 at Paycor Stadium against Chicago.
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