Weather disrupted the first game of the 2025 NFL season, as lightning in the area led to a long delay of Thursday night’s game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys.
Jaguars-Panthers delayed for lightning in Week 1
Weather has delayed the Jaguars-Panthers game in Week 1
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Mark Schofield is a former college quarterback and attorney covering the NFL and F1.
That game eventually resumed shortly before midnight on the East Coast, with the Eagles knocking off their division rivals by a final score of 24-20.
Weather has now disrupted another game, and the conditions show no signs of letting up.
Midway through the second quarter of Sunday’s game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Carolina Panthers, lightning around EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville forced another weather delay.
And the delay may linger for an extended period of time. According to weather reports from meteorologists, the lightning in the area may continue for a long period of time:
Under the NFL rules, it is league policy “that in most circumstances all regular-season and postseason games should be played to their conclusion.” However, there is a provision in the league rules for Commissioner Roger Goodell and other league officials to intervene should circumstances warrant.
According to Rule 17, Article 4, Section 1 of the NFL rules:
If, in the opinion of appropriate League authorities, it is impossible to begin or continue a game due to an emergency, or a game is deemed to be imminently threatened by any such emergency (e.g., severely inclement weather, lightning, flooding, power failure), the following procedures (Articles 5 through 11) will serve as guidelines for the Commissioner and/or the duly appointed representatives. The Commissioner has the authority to review the circumstances of each emergency and to adjust the following procedures in whatever manner the Commissioner deems appropriate. If, in the Commissioner’s opinion, it is reasonable to project that the resumption of an interrupted game would not change its ultimate result or adversely affect any other inter-team competitive issue, the Commissioner is empowered to terminate the game.
The longest weather delay in league history came back during the 2018 season, in a game between the Tennessee Titans and the Miami Dolphins. That game saw two lightning delays, the first lasting one hour and 57 minutes, the second coming with 6:47 left in the third quarter, lasting over two hours.
We’ll see if the conditions allow for the game to be resumed.
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