Temperatures are expected to be a blistering minus-1 degrees with wind chills between minus-20 and minus-30 degrees when the Dolphins and Chiefs kick off, according to the National Weather Service.
“Dangerously cold wind chills expected. Wind chills as low as 30 below zero,” the Weather Service said. “Avoid outside activities if possible. When outside, make sure you wear appropriate clothing, a hat, and gloves.”
If the Arctic blast arrives as forecast, it will produce the coldest football game played 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 is not forecast to be that cold, it could be dangerously chilly for players and fans.
“Temperatures will continue to cool through the evening so looking at temperatures below zero through the game,” said Brad Temeyer, a meteorologist at the Weather Service’s Kansas City, Mo., office.. “Frostbite at those types of temperatures can set in in about 30 minutes or less so being out watching a game for an extended period of time can cause significant damage.”
Players will also need to protect their extremities against frostbite, he said.
And those conditions don’t track favorably for the Dolphins. The Dolphins have lost 10 straight games when temperatures were at or below 40 degrees at kickoff, according to Stathead data. The Dolphins have a record of 25 wins, 46 losses and one tie in outdoor games when the temperature was 40 degrees or cooler.
But the cold doesn’t seem to bother the Chiefs. The Chiefs are 9-1 at home games when temperatures are below 40 degrees. They are 4-0 in the playoffs under the same conditions.
Yet, the reigning Super Bowl champs aren’t expecting the weather to do them any favors.
“You can’t bank on that. That’s where you get into trouble,” Chiefs Coach Andy Reid said earlier this week to reporters. “We’re not having a snowball fight.”
Some Miami players acknowledge their rivals may have a competitive edge over them, beyond the usual home-field advantage.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa told reporters at a news conference on Thursday that he hadn’t been exposed to temperatures cooler than 15 degrees in his lifetime.
But the team is working to be mentally prepared for the cold that awaits them.
“Regardless if it is 100 degrees here in Miami or zero degrees wherever it is at, I’m going to be high energy,” said Dolphins linebacker Duke Riley. “The weather doesn’t really matter. The place doesn’t really matter. What matters is the mind-set of everybody in the room and on the team, and how consistent can we be and the effort we give.”
“No one likes being cold,” said Dolphins Coach Mike McDaniel at a news conference on Thursday. “However, it does make the moment bigger when you know that it is an absolute fact that it’s going to be frigid. Well, what if as a team, you find a way for it to not affect you? To, be able to go and do athletic performance in that weather, it takes will.”
Meanwhile, the cold snap will also 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 watch for the region from Saturday, Jan. 13 to Monday, Jan. 15. And New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) declared a State of Emergency ahead of the winter storm.
Bands of precipitation coming off Lake Erie are projected to drop more than six inches of “lake effect” snow over the region from Saturday through Sunday night. Travel will be difficult to near impossible within snow bands, the NWS said.
A high wind warning is in effect until early Sunday morning with billowing wind speeds of 20 to 50 mph with gusts up to 65 mph.
Yet, as of Thursday evening, the NFL had made no plans to change the game venue.
“We are monitoring conditions as we do for every game, but there have been no discussions about making a change to the game’s status,” an NFL spokesperson told WGRZ radio in Buffalo.
