Mariners’ playoff games may alter Seahawks’ kickoff times

The Mariners’ American League West title is potentially causing scheduling issues for the Seahawks that could result in a changed kickoff time for at least one home game and possibly two, Seattle officials told ESPN.

Both of the Seahawks’ next two home games — Oct. 5 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oct. 20 versus the Houston Texans for “Monday Night Football” — are on evenings when the Mariners could be hosting playoff games.

The infrastructure of the area surrounding the Mariners’ T-Mobile Park and the Seahawks’ Lumen Field — which are practically next door to each other, a mere one-tenth of a mile apart — is not designed to support two games played at the same time and would create logistical issues that include a chaotic traffic situation along with overcrowding.

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Therefore, if the two games in Seattle wind up being scheduled for the same time — a decision that Major League Baseball must first make — changes to the Seahawks’ schedule might have to be made.

MLB officials are not expected to decide until Friday when the Mariners will start their Sunday AL Division Series in Seattle. But on that same day, the Seahawks are scheduled to host the Buccaneers at 1:05 p.m. local time.

If the Mariners also are scheduled to play at the same time, the Seahawks could push back their kickoff anywhere from 90 to 150 minutes, according to Seattle officials.

There is a similar but less likely scenario that could play out for the Monday night game on Oct. 20, when Game 7 of the AL Championship Series is scheduled to be played. The Seahawks host the Texans at 7:00 p.m. local time in the second game of a Monday Night Football doubleheader on ESPN.

A lot has to happen to even get to this point, but if the Mariners somehow wind up hosting Game 7 of the ACLS, the game likely would have to start somewhere around 4:30 p.m. local time, with the Seahawks kicking off some 150 minutes later, according to city officials.

These are not common scenarios, but ones that both teams and city officials have discussed and planned for.

Back in October 2022, the Seahawks and Mariners were in danger of playing at the same time due to a potential Game 4 in the Mariners’ playoff series against the Houston Astros. On the same day, the Seahawks were scheduled to play a 1:05 local time game against the Arizona Cardinals that they were preparing to push back 85 minutes, to a 2:30 start.

But the Mariners’ series didn’t last long enough, and a conflict therefore was avoided. Now, there are two potential conflicts looming in a year in which the Mariners won their first division title since 2001, when the Seahawks still played in the AFC.

T-Mobile Park, in the city’s SoDo neighborhood, is right up the street from Lumen Field, an all-purpose stadium that’s also home to the Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer and the Seattle Reign FC of the National Women’s Soccer League.