Oddly enough, after a week dominated by a plunge of Arctic air, the threat of thunderstorms is looming Sunday in parts of the Midwest, that may pose a challenge for some National Football League games.

A strong low pressure system in the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes will pull increasingly mild and humid air ahead of a sharp cold front. With a powerhouse jet-stream level disturbance punching east into the cold front, the stage is set for thunderstorms from the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley to the Lower Mississippi Valley.

(MORE: Sunday's Severe Threat)

Weather in your inbox

Forecast Location

Sign Up

By signing up you agree to the Terms & Privacy Policy. Unsubscribe at any time.

Here are the potential games impacted, including the latest forecast thinking and uncertainties. Click on the link to get the latest weekend forecast.

Baltimore at Chicago (1 p.m. EST)

• Potential impacts: Rain and thunderstorms likely, possibly strong or severe, with strong winds. A lightning delay is very possible.

Cleveland at Cincinnati (1 p.m. EST)

• Potential impacts: Rain and thunderstorms are a good bet, both for pre-game tailgate and during the game itself. Some storms may be severe. A lightning delay is possible. Strong south to southwest winds, as well.

Detroit at Pittsburgh (1 p.m. EST)

• Potential impacts: A good chance of showers and thunderstorms. A lightning delay is possible. Winds increasing.

N.Y. Jets at Buffalo (1 p.m. EST)

• Potential impacts: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. A lightning delay is possible. Winds increasing during the game. 

While these games will be in domes or retractable roof stadiums, thunderstorms are also possible in New Orleans. Keep this in mind for your pre-game tailgate.

For now, it appears soaking rain may hold off for games in Philadelphia and the New Jersey meadowlands Sunday.

Lightning and Stadiums

A lightning strike at a stadium packed with tens of thousands of fans is a chilling thought.

Thanks to a partnership between the NFL, NCAA and the meteorology community, we're making progress addressing the threat of lightning at outdoor stadiums. But there's still plenty of room for improvement.

For example, the kickoff of the NFL's opening night game in Denver on Sep. 5, 2013 was commendably delayed 33 minutes due to a nearby thundershower.

(MORE: Lightning Delays NFL Opening Night)

The call to action on the Jumbotron mentioned "severe lightning activity in the Denver area." The call to action said, "If you feel the need, take cover in a sheltered area."

As you can see in the photo at right, few fans, at least in the sections near the big screen, felt the need to take shelter. 

Just two days later, an NCAA football game in East Lansing, Mich. between the host Michigan State Spartans and the University of South Florida was also delayed by lightning.

This time, the student section refused to take shelter, despite a radar loop showing approaching thunderstorms on the stadium's giant screen.

Finally, Michigan State head basketball coach Tom Izzo, a revered figure there, grabbed the microphone to urge the students to take cover, pointing to the radar and promising to sit in the student section after the delay.

Izzo received a standing ovation from the meteorology community for his actions. But why did it take a legendary coach to tell a group of college students to seek shelter, as apparently most of the rest of the fans had already done?

Another NCAA game was delayed by lightning that day in Baton Rouge, La., however many fans did not find safe shelter, despite a public address announcement urging fans to do so.

(MORE: Lightning delays NCAA games on Sep. 7, 2013)

If league officials and meteorologists deem lightning risk to be high enough to delay a game and pull players and coaches off the field, fans should also seek shelter immediately, even if it's not raining.

According to Dr. Greg Forbes (Twitter), severe weather expert for The Weather Channel, cloud-to-ground lightning can strike as far as 10 miles away from the thunderstorm's rainshaft in rare occasions. 

Here are just a few recent examples of lightning strikes near, or in some cases, at stadiums:

• Florida high school halftime show Sep. 13, 2013
• Texas Rangers baseball game July 2012
• Canadian Football League game July 2010

It's also a myth that lightning only strikes the tallest objects. Even if a stadium has a series of small lightning rods, you're still in danger of a strike in your open-air seat.

(MORE: Lighting Safety | Lightning's Destructive Power)

The NCAA has the following protocol for lightning delays:

• Lightning detected 15 miles away: On-field officials are notified.
• Lightning detected 10 miles away: On-field officials are notified and a public address announcement is made recommending fans should seek shelter.
• Lightning detected 6 miles away: Game is delayed until 30 minutes after the last lightning strike within 6 miles. Players, officials taken off the field.

The NFL has procedures when lightning threatens.

"We have a security meeting at 100 minutes (before kickoff), at 90 minutes a meeting with the TV teams, and we go through the scenarios in case there is weather," NFL vice president of game operations Mike Kensil told the Associated Press in mid-September 2013. "We go through our meteorological services and the services the stadium uses. Safety is paramount."

NOAA's National Weather Service has put together a lightning safety toolkit for stadiums and other large venues, with general guidelines for those in charge of large events.

Here are some tips to keep in mind before you head to the stadium:

1) Check the forecast. You probably already do this when deciding what to wear to the tailgate, and if you'll need rain gear. Any chance of thunderstorms should keep the threat of lightning in the back of your mind.

2) Download The Weather Channel app for your smartphone. If the sky is turning dark, check the app's radar to see if storms are moving toward your location, assuming stadium bandwidth allows. This can give you advance warning.

3) Take shelter immediately when a lightning delay is announced in a covered course, or other substantial, enclosed area away from metal structures. Do not stay in your seat and do not wait for rain. A lightning strike may precede rain, if any falls at all.

{"id":"wxn4","type":"wxnode_content_well","schema_version":"1.1.12","contentwell":"\n

<\/div>\n\n\n