ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Piles of rubber pellets from the artificial turf surface at New Era Field delayed the start of the second half of Sunday's game between the Buffalo Bills and Pittsburgh Steelers by seven minutes.

After moderate snowfall in the first half, groundkeepers used tractors equipped with large brushes to clear snow off the artificial turf surface. In addition to removing the snow, the brushes also kicked up large amounts of black rubber pellets used to backfill the turf.

The rubber pellets covered the white sideline paint in front of both teams' benches, as well as large portions behind each end zone.

At the direction of referee Pete Morelli, groundskeepers used shovels and leaf blowers to remove the pellets from the field. A tractor was also called out to make another sweep of the field, while coaches from both teams used their feet to brush pellets off the sideline paint.

The Bills released a statement on the delay, which said, "The brush on one of the tractors used for snow removal on the field was too firm which caused a build-up of the rubber pellets on the sidelines. Our field crew worked in conjunction with NFL officials to clear the sidelines to their specifications which caused a brief delay in the start of the season half."

The Steelers kicked off to begin the second half after the delay.