There might be football at U.S. Bank Stadium this weekend after all

Even though the Minnesota Vikings will be getting on a plane in a couple of days to take on the New Orleans Saints in London, there’s a possibility that there could be football at U.S. Bank Stadium this coming weekend anyway.

ESPN NFL reporter Jeff Darlington is reporting that the league is closely monitoring Hurricane Ian, which is set to make landfall in Florida. . .and, specifically, over the Tampa area. . .in the next couple of days. This could present a problem for the league, as there’s a matchup scheduled for Sunday between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.

Darlington notes that the Miami Dolphins are not playing at home in Week 4, but the league wouldn’t want to end up diverting resources that could be used in recovery efforts by moving a game to somewhere else in Florida, so they could be exploring sites in the Midwest. That would include U.S. Bank Stadium.

This wouldn’t be the first time the NFL has had to do a neutral site game because of weather issues. Last season the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints had to play a game in Jacksonville because of Hurricane Ida. And in one that Vikings fans will clearly remember, the league wound up moving a game between the Vikings and the New York Giants to Ford Field in Detroit after the Metrodome roof collapsed due to heavy snow in 2010.

If there are Vikings fans that aren’t going to be able to make the trip across the pond to see the purple take on the Saints at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, perhaps having an opportunity to see a battle between two of the game's top quarterbacks will serve as a consolation prize. If the league does go with something like this due to Hurricane Ian, we’ll bring you the news about it right here.