I get that it snows more on the leeward side of the Great Lakes, but it didn’t look like there was a cloud in the sky in Cincy. I know it can be sunny and still very cold, but is the contrast from lake effect always as stark as today?
Absolutely. You can have places pick up a ton of snow in a lake-effect event, and the amount rapidly diminish just a few miles away, because they aren’t directly in the line of the wind.
Lake effect snow can and does absolutely happen when the surrounding areas are sunny; it’s caused by cold wind blowing over the warmer water of the lakes, picking up moisture, and then dumping that moisture as snow once it reaches shore. It doesn’t require a storm system at all; it just needs enough wind, and a stretch of open water.
In this case, Lake Erie, at Buffalo, is currently at about 46F at the surface. The air temperature at Orchard Park has been in the high 20s all day, and the wind’s been mostly out of the west (i.e., crossing Lake Erie before it reaches Buffalo), and sometimes gusty, for the past three days. That’s perfect conditions for lots of lake-effect snow.
It looks like Niners RB Christian McCaffrey, who missed the first half of the season with Achilles tendonitis, may miss the rest of the season after injuring the PCL in his right knee during tonight’s game. 
As Kenobi said, it can favor the offense. The offense knows where it’s going on a play, the defense doesn’t.
If anything, the offense should call the maximum number of passing plays that involve the WRs suddenly stopping, changing direction, juking, etc., in hopes the DBs slip and fall while trying to keep up.
Non-contact leg injuries are terrible. I’m not surprised that it was serious. Those are awful.
San Francisco might be a rival to my Seahawks but I can’t help but feel for the guy. He’s one of the most talented players in the league and he just got back after being out so long, and now this…
Last night it appeared that it was the rushers who had the edge, as both teams were well over 5 yards per carry.
Are you thinking of Cleveland, which is also on Lake Erie? Cincinnati is like 250 miles away from the Great Lakes.
No, it was Pittsburgh playing in Cincinnati that I saw; was bright and sunny when I looked in.
I grew up in the northwest. When storms came in from the ocean, they seemed to hit the whole region. There might be rain in Seattle and overcast in Portland. There were places that got less rain because they were in the rain shadows of mountains. The eastern halves of Washington and Oregon are a lot more arid that the western. I know weather changes from one place to another, but bright and sunny to blizzard in adjoining states still seems unusual to me.
ETA: Okay, Ohio and New York are not adjoining; there’s a little bit of Pennsylvania in between.
Again, it’s because lake-effect snow is a very localized sort of event, essentially a micro-climate thing. It’s not a traditional winter storm.
As I noted earlier, I live in the western suburbs of Chicago. We’re about 10 miles away from Lake Michigan, but we’re on the western side of the lake, and prevailing winds blow from the west or northwest. We rarely get lake-effect snow in my area, because to get it, the wind would have to be blowing out of the east (which is uncommon).
Meanwhile, 40 or 50 miles away, in northwestern Indiana, they are in the “lake effect” zone, because a wind blowing out of the north or west blows over a stretch of Lake Michigan before it reaches their shoreline. It’s not uncommon at all for them to get a foot or more of snow when the wind is blowing from that direction, while we get nothing here (and, often, it’s even sunny here while it’s snowing there).
Did you watch the game? WRs were falling any time they tried to make sharp cuts. It’s easy for DBs to cover if the receiver is on the ground.
The good plays were straight ahead runs when the OL could just push the D out of the way. Once the runner has some momentum, it’s difficult to bring them down in those conditions.
Cincinnati is nearly 400 miles from Buffalo, are you really surprised that 2 locations 400 miles apart have wildly different weather on a given day?
Speaking of weather. Weather in Denver tonight is clear, no wind, around 40ish at game time. I’m sticking with Winston throwing 2+ interceptions and a double digit loss for the Browns.
I’ve never noticed a change this extreme before in real time, especially across cities at roughly similar latitudes.
Can we drop the hijack now?
Patriots lost what normally would have been a heart-breaker on a late 2 pt conversion by the Colts, but honestly it’s probably the best long-term result, even if it is painful in the short term. This is a lost season, and losing improves their draft position for next season, and they desperately need to add talent to the roster through the draft. But despite playing for nothing, the team played hard and showed some improvement. So, you know, when your season is this bad, you take all the positives you can 
The Pats eschewed a Hail Mary from the 50-yard line, instead opting for a 68-yard field goal attempt. The attempt was right down the middle, but came up just short, hitting the base of the uprights maybe 3 or 4 feet from the ground. It might have been good if the attempt was a yard or two shorter.
And, indeed, McCaffrey will be going onto IR, as will be the guy who had been starting while McCaffrey had been injured earlier in the season, Jordan Mason (who suffered a high ankle sprain last night).
This leaves the Niners to finish what is likely a lost season with rookie Isaac Guerendo as their starter; they’ll probably elevate Patrick Taylor Jr. from the practice squad, and/or sign another RB.
As an aside, watching last night’s game was an absolute blast. There’s nothing that warms my heart half as much as watching football played in a blizzard. I didn’t care that the game wasn’t competitive, I enjoyed every second of it. I ended up rewatching a second time on DVR since I was distracted with toddler stuff the first go-round.
I have tickets to both December Bears games and I’m hoping we get some of that delicious lake effect snow.
Snow games are awesome on TV.
I’m not so sure about in-person.
Good luck to you!
I was at the 1985 “Snow Bowl” game at Lambeau, where the Packers trounced the Buccaneers (who just wanted to go home and thaw out). It was in the middle of a blizzard (heavy snow plus strong wind), and while the air temperature was about 25F, the wind chill was below zero.
It really was fun, but by the fourth quarter, my dad and I were really cold. It probably didn’t help that the stadium was only about 1/3 full – anyone who had tickets, who lived more than 10 or 15 miles from Green Bay (which describes a lot of Packers season ticket holders, who live all over the state and beyond), likely weren’t able to make it, due to the snow.
The NFL has fined Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson over $22,000 for this hit on Detroit linebacker Brian Branch during their game last month.
Maybe I’m biased since I’m an Indianapolis fan (though I have been critical of Richardson’s abilities on this board), but I just don’t see anything fineworthy in that play. There was no flag thrown, so the officiating crew didn’t think it was egregious.
I realize that the rule is there, and there for a reason. But seems like a tickytacky hit to fine someone for, especially since the officials didn’t penalize him during the game.