The Seattle Seahawks are going to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5, a battle between two teams with just one loss. However, the time of the game was in question because of nothing having to do with the NFL. Head coach Mike Macdonald was fine with it all, though.
The real reason Seattle versus Tampa Bay could have been affected was because Cal Raleigh had such a great season for the Seattle Mariners. Maybe the Ms would have made the playoffs anyway, but without Raleigh's 60 home run season, that is debatable.
Not only did the Mariners reach the playoffs, but they were the second seed in the American League, which meant that they were going to host their initial series in the playoffs. One of these games was going to be on the same Sunday that the Seahawks played the Buccaneers.
Seattle Seahawks kickoff time versus Buccaneers not moved because of Mariners playoff baseball
Playoff baseball would have first dibs over regular season football when it came to holding the game at a certain time, and having the Seahawks and the Mariners play at the same time would have been no good. If you have been to Seattle (or live there), you know that Lumen Field and T-Mobile are literally a throw away from each other.
Cramming tens of thousands of people into such a small space is a security and logistical nightmare. Seattle city officials might have needed the Seahawks to change the time of kickoff, but they won't have to. The Mariners will play at 5:03 pm PT on Sunday, so the Seahawks' kickoff will remain unchanged at 1:05 pm PT (that's 4:05 pm ET for Bucs fans).
Any move would not have affected the Seahawks as much as the Buccaneers. Seattle is playing at home, so a few hours' difference would have been nothing. Tampa Bay has to fly across the country, and would have been faced with a later time.
The concern now for Seattle sports fans is two-fold. You will get to see both games if you choose to try to do so. Missing Mariners playoff baseball isn't an option, but neither is missing the Seahawks play. Now, you just need to tell friends and family that you will be busy from 1 pm PT to 8 pm.
Update: The Seattle Mariners will play the Detroit Tigers in the ALDS. The first game will be at T-Mobile Park at 5:38 pm PT on Saturday, with the game on Sunday at 5:03 pm PT.