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The Miami Dolphins football players, accustomed to playing in tropical temperatures where heat stroke is a greater threat than frostbite, will be hit with subzero temperatures this weekend in their Saturday night wild-card game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Had the Dolphins won last week, they would have played their first postseason game in Miami, where temperatures are expected to be 69 degrees at kickoff. Now the team may have to endure one of the coldest games in NFL history to stay alive Your fever dreams of another Super Bowl victory.
According to the National Weather Service, temperatures are expected to be a blistering minus 1 degree and wind chills between minus 20 and minus 30 degrees for the Dolphins and Chiefs opener.
“Dangerously cold wind chills are expected. Wind chills down to 30 degrees below zero,” the weather service said. “Avoid outdoor activities if possible. If you are outside, be sure to wear appropriate clothing, a hat and gloves.”
If the Arctic blast occurs as predicted, it will be the coldest football game in Kansas City franchise history and the coldest ever played by the Dolphins.
The Ice Bowl holds the title for the coldest game ever played when the Green Bay Packers hosted the Dallas Cowboys at Lambeau Field in 1967. The temperature at kickoff was minus 13 degrees with a brutal wind chill of minus 48 degrees.
While the Dolphins-Chiefs game isn't expected to be that cold, it could be dangerously chilly for players and fans.
“Temperatures will continue to cool throughout the evening, so we can expect subzero temperatures during the game,” said Brad Temeyer, a meteorologist at the weather service's office in Kansas City, Missouri. “In such temperatures, frostbite can occur in about 30 minutes or less, so watching a game for an extended period of time can cause significant damage.”
Players also need to protect their extremities from frostbite, he said.
And these conditions are not exactly favorable for the Dolphins. According to Stathead data, the Dolphins have lost 10 straight games when temperatures were 40 degrees or below at kickoff. The Dolphins have a record of 25 wins, 46 losses and one tie in outdoor games where the temperature was 40 degrees or cooler.
But the cold doesn't seem to bother the Chiefs. The Chiefs are 9-1 in home games in temperatures below 40 degrees. Under the same conditions, they are 4-0 in the playoffs.
Still, the reigning Super Bowl champions aren't expecting the weather to do them any favors.
“You can’t rely on that. That’s where you get in trouble,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid told reporters earlier this week. “We’re not having a snowball fight.”
Some Miami players acknowledge that their rivals may have a competitive advantage over them beyond the usual home advantage.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa told reporters at a news conference Thursday that he has never been exposed to temperatures below 15 degrees in his life.
But the team is working to be mentally prepared for the cold that awaits them.
“Whether it’s 100 degrees here in Miami or zero degrees wherever, I’m going to be energized,” Dolphins linebacker Duke Riley said. “The weather doesn’t matter. The location doesn't really matter. What matters is the mindset of everyone in the room and on the team, how consistent we can be and how much effort we put in.”
“Nobody likes it when it’s cold,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said at a news conference Thursday. “However, knowing that it is an absolute fact that it will be cold makes the moment bigger. What if you as a team found a way to make it not affect you? It takes will to be able to perform athletically in this weather.”
Meanwhile, the cold snap will reach the eastern corner of the country as the Buffalo Bills prepare to host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. The Bills are scheduled to play in their outdoor stadium.
The NWS has issued a winter storm warning for the region from Saturday, January 13th through Monday, January 15th. And New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D) declared a state of emergency ahead of the winter storm.
Bands of precipitation coming from Lake Erie are expected to dump more than six inches of “lake effect” snow across the region Saturday through Sunday night. Travel will be difficult to nearly impossible within the snow limits, the NWS said.
A high wind warning is in effect until early Sunday morning, with gusting winds of 20 to 50 mph and gusts up to 65 mph.
Still, the NFL had no plans to change the venue as of Thursday evening.
“We are monitoring conditions as we would with any game, but there have been no discussions about changing the status of the game,” an NFL spokesman said WGRZ Radio in Buffalo.