Bucs evacuating to New Orleans ahead of Hurricane Milton, Week 6 matchup with Saints
With yet another major storm set to have significant impacts along the Gulf Coast, one of the Saints' upcoming opponents is heading to New Orleans early.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, whom the Saints host in Week 6, are planning on evacuating the area this week and traveling to Louisiana on Tuesday. Hurricane Milton is currently projected to make landfall in the Tampa area as a Category 3 storm at some point late Wednesday evening.
It's the second storm to impact south Florida in a span of two weeks after Hurricane Helene affected a large swath of the eastern seaboard. New Orleans has had its own weather issues with Hurricane Francine making landfall in Louisiana in late September, though it did not impact their travel schedule ahead of a win over the Dallas Cowboys.
The decision will mean the Bucs will be operating out of New Orleans hotel rooms for the better part of the week as they prepare for the game. They'll conduct media availabilities virtually. The team's practices on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday will be held at Tulane's Yulman Stadium, according to a report from NOLA.com, where they'll work around the Green Wave's practice schedule.. The Saints were in a similar scenario to start the 2021 season when they had to evacuate for Ida, ultimately practicing at TCU's facilities in the Dallas area before hosting a season-opening game in Jacksonville against the Green Bay Packers.
The Saints are currently in Kansas City preparing for a showdown with the Chiefs on Monday Night Football, and will also be returning to Louisiana in the early hours Tuesday morning.
Saints-Bucs is scheduled for a noon kickoff at the Caesars Superdome on Sunday, Sept. 13.
