Wind Chill Advisory and Winter Storm Warning issued for WNY

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Bitter cold today, then heavy snow Sunday night into Monday.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — This January is off to a cold and snowy start, and that trend is not slowing heading into the middle of the month.

Earlier this week Western New York experienced its coldest day in nearly two years when temperatures plunged into the single digits with wind chills below zero on Tuesday.

It is going to be a downright frigid night to be out at Highmark Stadium with temperatures in the single digits and wind chill values at or below zero. With light winds, we are not discounting the fact that it will be cold but it’s not nearly as bad as it could be.

A Wind Chill Advisory has been issued for Wyoming, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Erie, Niagara, Orleans, and Allegany Counties from 6 p.m. Saturday until 7 a.m. Sunday for wind chill values as low as -15° to -20°. This is the type of cold that you want to bundle up for and make sure you cover up exposed skin if you plan to be outdoor for extended periods of time.

Conditions will not be as cold for Sunday, with sunshine in the forecast and temperatures warming into the mid 20s in the afternoon. But Western New Yorkers will only get one day of respite from inclement weather with the next system moving in for Sunday night Monday.

And this will likely be one snowy Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and not just for Western New Yorkers. Current model projections have a strong low pressure system swinging up the East Coast.

The main impact for this region will be snow, potentially heavy snow, and some impressive accumulations too. It’s a bit to early to call for exact numbers, but all of Western New York should prepare for a snowy day and the potential for cancellations and/or travel impacts from the snow Monday. Thankfully, there will be less people on the road due to MLK holiday.

A Winter Storm Warning has been issued for Allegany County from 7 p.m. Sunday to 7 p.m. Monday warning of 7 to 13 inches of snow the southeastern corner of Western New York.

A Winter Storm Warning for Wyoming, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Southern Erie Counties is warning of 12 to 20 inches of snow. This warning is in place from 7 p.m. Sunday to 10 p.m. Monday.

Finally, a separate Winter Storm Warning has been issued for Niagara, Orleans, Northern Erie and Genesee Counties from 9 p.m. Sunday to 7 p.m. Monday. Snowfall totals between 12 to 19 inches are possible in these areas.

All areas across Western New York will be dealing with gusty winds on Monday with gusts between 30 to 40 mph and this could make travel near impossible with whiteout conditions expected.

NFL betting: How the weather could affect Patriots-Bills and other wild card games

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It’s the most common and banal subject for small talk, but the weather could play a big factor in the first three games of this weekend’s wild card slate, so let’s discuss its potential impact.

All lines from BetMGM.

Line: Bengals -5.5, o/u 48.5

Weather forecast: 31°F with 10 mph winds and 0% chance of precipitation

Per Paul Dehner Jr., Raiders QB Derek Carr is 0-5 in games where the temperature was 37 degrees or less at kickoff. Like George Costanza in a swimming pool, Carr’s EPA experiences significant shrinkage when it’s cold. His career Expected Points Added per play is -0.12 when it’s 40 degrees or colder and -0.07 when it’s between 41 and 50 degrees. Carr owns a positive EPA at every other temperature. Bengals QB Joe Burrow, on the other hand, is at his very best when it’s chilly. Baby Aaron’s EPA is +0.33 in temperatures between 41 and 50 degrees and +0.54 when it’s 40 degrees or below. This game is setting up nicely for a Cincinnati team that beat the Raiders 32-13 in Vegas a couple months ago.

Line: Bills -4.5, o/u 43.5

Weather forecast: 8°F with 7 mph winds and 4% chance of snow

Bills QB Josh Allen is 3-2 in games with freezing temperatures, and his stats are even less impressive. He’s completed 50.3% of his passes, averaged 166.6 passing yards per game, and thrown six touchdowns to seven interceptions over those five contests. The culprit, according to Allen, is poor foot circulation. Former Pro Bowl linebacker Bart Scott couldn’t wait to dish out some advice this week on how to overcome that problem. His solution? “Take some Viagra.” Things haven’t been as hard in cold weather for Patriots QB Mac Jones. Even though he was born and raised in The Sunshine State and played college ball in Alabama, Jones posts his highest NFL EPA when fans are bundled up. The rookie boasts a +0.59 EPA in temperatures between 41 and 50 degrees and +0.15 when it’s 40 degrees or below. It may be worth taking the points with Bill Belichick against a stiff Allen.

Story continues

Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Line: Bucs -8.5, o/u 45.5

Weather forecast: 66°F with 23 mph winds and 11% chance of precipitation

With an 84% chance of rain earlier in the day and 23 mph winds, this one could turn out to be a slopfest benefitting the underdog Eagles. Philadelphia leads the league in rushing, averaging 159.7 yards per game on the ground, and will welcome the return of RB Miles Sanders, whose 5.5 yards per carry ranks fourth among running backs. The Bucs ended the year as the third-best rushing defense, but ranked 11th over the last three games of the season, giving up 109 rushing yards per outing. Linebacker Lavonte David is a game-time decision with a foot injury and would be a big blow to the Tampa defense if he’s not able to suit up. Betting against Tom Brady can often be a deflating experience but he’s down two of his best receivers and will likely be facing strong winds on Sunday. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Eagles were able to keep this one close.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is 3-2 in games where it’s 32 degrees or colder. (Rich Barnes/USA TODAY Sports)

Stats provided by teamrankings.com, nflfastr.com and NBC Sports.

Will New England Patriots-Buffalo Bills performance be impacted by weather?

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‘It’s beautiful weather for football,’ Bills fans say, brushing off the cold

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Saturday’s game rivaled that game, with temperatures in the single digits. But the couple was incredulous when asked whether they thought about watching the Patriots game from the confines of their Boston, N.Y., home.

“No way,” Rick Genesse said. “This is generational. The last time the Bills were this good was in the ’90s.”

Genesse and his wife rented an RV for the occasion and showed up Friday night. When it got cold, they started a fire.

“It’s beautiful weather for football,” Julie Genesse said.

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That statement is only true if you come prepared, like Andy Madden of Lexington, S.C., did.

Madden, 41, strolled through the RV lot with a beer in his left hand and a cigar in his right. The Corning native brought his two sons, ages 10 and 11, up from the South to experience a Bills game, weather and all.

“I wanted to get them in Buffalo and see the elements firsthand,” Madden said. “Plus, we only have what, a year left in this stadium?”

Madden had simple advice for his sons about dressing warm.

“It’s just layers,” he said. “Get good layers.”

Winter storm warning issued for Rochester region. Projected snowfall totals increased

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A potent winter storm is forecast to wallop tens of millions of people across the central, southern and eastern USA with snow, ice, wind and rain over the next few days.

“Get ready, a major snowstorm is coming,” AccuWeather meteorologist Bernie Rayno warned.

A winter storm warning has been issued for Monroe and surrounding counties for Sunday evening through Monday evening.

The National Weather Service in Buffalo said total snow accumulations of 9 to 17 inches is possible, with winds gusts up to 40 mph. Weather Service Meteorologist Jason Alumbaugh said the heaviest snow is expected to fall in the region after midnight on Monday through later in the morning including during Monday’s morning commute.

Travel could be very difficult to impossible for those who need to travel during the Monday morning and evening commutes.

On Saturday, the high is expected to reach 12 and drop back to around 0 Saturday night and early Sunday morning. Sunday’s high should return to the mid-20s. The normal high in Rochester for a mid-January day is 33 and low is 19, according to the Weather Service.

More:Misery loves company. Winter survival strategies from a longtime Rochesterian

Winter storm Izzy

After dumping up to a foot of snow in parts of the Upper Midwest, Winter Storm Izzy is forecasted to dive into the South on Saturday and into Sunday, USA Today reported.

The storm is expected to bring snow into cities such as Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee, and Charlotte, North Carolina.

The winter weather is expected to bring major travel disruptions throughout the Martin Luther King Jr., holiday weekend, AccuWeather said.

In the South, the forecast includes the potential for a dangerous ice storm.

“While much is going to be said about the snow across much of the central and eastern part of the country with our latest winter storm," AccuWeather chief meteorologist Jonathan Porter said, “I want to make sure we don’t lose track of the significant ice storm risk.”

“Parts of North and South Carolina, as well as portions of Virginia where amounts could easily exceed half an inch of ice” could face the biggest threat from icy precipitation, he said.

The ice could contribute to power outages and tree damage, Porter said.

Atlanta is in the path of the storm, which could end the city’s nearly four-year streak without measurable snow.

Up to 18 inches of snow forecast for Northeast

The storm’s last stops will be the mid-Atlantic and Northeast after it takes a sharp turn to the north-northeast along the Eastern Seaboard on Sunday and into Monday.

Heavy snow is forecast to paste portions of the region – especially the Appalachians and interior Northeast – with heavy snow by the time the storm winds down late Monday. The best chance for heavy snow is expected to be north and west of the Boston-Washington Interstate 95 corridor, from parts of Northern Virginia to Maine, Weather.com said. Some of these areas could see 6 to 12 inches of snowfall, as well as sleet or ice accumulation.

Cold weather for Saturday’s Bills game

On Saturday night, the temperature is expected to be in the single digits and the wind chill between zero and -4 at kickoff time of the AFC wild-card game between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots in Orchard Park.

More:Bills game Saturday may be the second coldest in team history. Here are the 3 chilliest.

Saturday is also the 28th anniversary of the coldest game in Bills history — Jan. 15, 1994 when the Los Angeles Raiders showed up at Rich Stadium for a divisional round game when it was 0 degrees with a wind chill of 32 below zero. The Bills won 29-23.