Dolphins close offices Thursday due to Hurricane Matthew; No problems for Sunday’s game expected

The Miami Dolphins have closed their offices ahead of Hurricane Matthew. The Dolphins players were not scheduled to practice Thursday, but the coaches and executives were supposed to be in the building. Instead, the team will shutter the building and allow employees to spend the day preparing their homes for the storm.

Hurricane Matthew, which made landfall over Haiti this week, will move up to the United States beginning on Thursday. The current model has the storm paralleling the east coast of Florida and moving up into the Carolinas over the weekend. The storm is currently a Category 4 hurricane, weakening to a Category 3 by Friday morning and continuing to weaken to a Category 2 by Saturday and to a Category 1 by Monday, when it is projected to turn back out into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Carolina.

The Dolphins, according to Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Mularkey, have had early discussion about possibly moving Sunday’s football game against the Titans to Nashville if the Hurricane causes severe damage to the stadium or the community. Hard Rock Stadium, which underwent a $500 million renovation over the past two offseasons, is expected to be able to withstand a Category 4 storm.

The Dolphins due expect the area to be fine by Sunday, with the game able to be played as scheduled. Kickoff will be at 1pm ET.