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Day Trip To MetLife: Sandy Forces Steelers To Alter Travel Plans

PITTSBURGH (CBSNewYork/AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers are turning their visit to New Jersey this weekend to face the Giants into a day trip.

Due to Superstorm Sandy's effects on the Tri-State area, the Steelers will leave for MetLife Stadium on Sunday morning and depart Sunday evening.

NFL teams are required to travel the day before a game. The league allowed the Steelers to alter their plans because the hotel the team is booked to stay at in Jersey City was still without power as of Thursday afternoon.

The Steelers didn't want "add any unnecessary strain to the area's resources" and change hotels, filling rooms that could be used by displaced residents, according to the team's official website.

"So many people are affected in the area," said Pittsburgh wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery, familiar with the area after spending his first seven season with the Jets. "You have staff at the hotel that might be affected and things of that nature. They might not have enough staff. They have no power and you have towns that have been wiped out. I am sure for the hotel it might be a relief. For the people who live there your hearts go out to them. There is a lot of damage."

Pittsburgh will fly at 9 a.m. on Sunday and arrive in Newark about 90 minutes later, well ahead of the scheduled 4:25 p.m. kickoff. The team will charter home later Sunday night.

The question has been asked for the NYC Marathon, the Knicks' opener at MSG and the postponed Nets opener: should this go on as scheduled? Be heard in the comments below...

(TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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