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Bears-Vikings Monday Night Football At TCF Bank Stadium, Not Georgia Dome

by Jason Kirk • Dec 16, 2010 9:44 AM EST

Last night the Chicago Tribune reported the Georgia Dome was still being considered as a possible relocation point for this weekend's Monday Night Football game between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings. Monday's still weekend, right? That's just a little bit behind the story, and these things happen sometimes: the Vikings have confirmed the University of Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium, as has the NFL's spokesman.

For the entire story on the Metrodome collapse debacle and the rush to clear TCF Bank Stadium, enjoy SB Nation's meticulous StoryStream on the subject.

Still, it would've been fun to get a free Monday Night Football game at the Dome, especially in advance of next week's MNFer between the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons. Good practice! Though if anyone from the NFL happened to glance at @MarkArum's Twitter last night during Southeastern Icemageddon 2010, they'd probably think about canceling our Monday night game while cringing at the idea of moving Bears-Vikes here.

ht @AJCFalcons

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Comments

TCF Stadium is not a done deal

Per the Vikings last statement. They want to play there, but as of right now, the league hasn’t signed off. (Vikings statement as of 19 hours ago, contradicting their previous tweet).

At this time, NFL officials are touring TCF Bank Stadium to ensure its safety for our fans and its ability to meet the primary technical requirements for an NFL game. Ultimately the decision to re-locate a game is the league’s in consultation with the two teams. The NFL supports the plan to play Monday night’s game at TCF Bank Stadium but is currently ensuring viability of this plan.

At the same time, the Vikings and the University of Minnesota are diligently working through all of the issues associated with moving a game such as tickets, parking, and operations. The organization is working to accommodate our fans’ questions, and we will continue to inform them on this fluid situation as soon as more information is available.

There’s been some griping from some of the Viking players about playing on what could be a rock-hard surface at TCF Bank Stadium. The league is working with the FieldTurf folks to soften up what should be a frozen field.

At the end of the day, they’ll likely work through those issues and hold the game at UM. There does remain a possibility of the game moving elsewhere. Atlanta is one of the main candidates to host the game if the TCF option fails.

by Phil Foley on Dec 16, 2010 10:13 AM EST reply actions