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 days 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.
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 AL Division Series next Sunday 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 on Oct. 20, when Game 7 of the AL Championship Series is scheduled to be played. The Seahawks are set to host the Texans at 7 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 that 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 for which both teams and city officials have discussed and planned.
In October 2022, the Seahawks and the 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 game at 1:05 p.m. local time against the Arizona Cardinals that the Seahawks were preparing to push back 85 minutes, to a 2:30 p.m. 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 and Lumen Field are situated in the city's SoDo neighborhood. Lumen Field is an all-purpose stadium that also is home to Major League Soccer's Seattle Sounders FC and the Seattle Reign FC of the National Women's Soccer League.