Buccaneers rearranging travel plans as Hurricane Milton approaches, will head to New Orleans early

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are relocating to New Orleans this week in advance of Hurricane Milton’s expected landfall later this week, the team announced Monday. The Bucs play the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

Milton intensified into a Category 4 hurricane Monday with sustained winds estimated to be around 150 mph, according to the National Weather Service. Most projections have it making landfall near the Tampa area, along the western coast of the Florida Peninsula, with rain and wind affecting the area as early as Tuesday night.

The Buccaneers and Saints are scheduled to play at 1 p.m. ET in the Caesars Superdome and will prepare for the matchup in the New Orleans area. Tampa Bay announced it will depart for New Orleans on Tuesday morning.

This isn’t the first time the Buccaneers have relocated due to a hurricane. In 2022, Tampa Bay moved operations to Miami for a week due to Hurricane Ian.

Relocating due to hurricanes has become somewhat common for teams located on the Gulf Coast. The Saints altered their schedule earlier this year due to Hurricane Francine and moved operations to Dallas in 2021 due to Hurricane Ida.

New Orleans’ home opener was relocated that year to Tampa Bay as a result of that storm.

Tampa Bay is looking to bounce back from an overtime loss to the Atlanta Falcons last Thursday.

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