Rodgers: Green Bay weather gives us advantage

Heading into December’s slate of NFL games, the Green Bay Packers find themselves a game in front of the Detroit Lions for the NFC North division lead.

At 9-3 and coming off an impressive win over the previously hot New England Patriots on a cold evening in Green Bay, the Packers are in position to grab the division title, particularly with two of their remaining regular season games being at Lambeau Field.

One of those games, the last of the season, is against the Lions, a team that has bested the Packers earlier in the season.

The Packers, led by super quarterback Aaron Rodgers, are also fighting for home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. Playing in those frigid Green Bay temperatures, and especially field slick from snow and ice, gives the Packers’ offense an advantage, says Rodgers, even against other cold weather teams.

“It doesn't really matter what team comes in; there’s an advantage based on the footing and the weather,” Rodgers said this morning on ESPN’s Mike and Mike. “I’ve always found in the cold weather, it’s a little bit more difficult to rush the passer. And, the footing favors the offense because, much like on an icy field or a wet field, an offensive player knows where he’s going. You have a slight advantage there.”

We all know that from our days playing backyard football in the snow, right?

If you were running with the ball, you could easily put a move on a defender, who would have to react to your movement, and then slip right on his keister. Anyone who has experienced the joy of football in the snow with their buddies has more than likely been on both ends of that scenario.

OK. Back to Rodgers. He briefly mentioned the effect cold temps can have on the ball, saying “the cold weather does some different things to the football, and if you’re not used to that it can bother you a little bit.”

I was hoping Professor Rodgers would delve in how the elasticity of the ball decreases in the cold. It would have been great to get a cold-weather quarterback’s insight into how the frigid temps affect his grip and the flight of the ball.

Hey, you know what. Maybe I’ll give him a call.

Stay tuned.

-- RAINOUT --

Friday Football Forecasts

Getty Images

When it comes to bad weather football games, I’m more of a fan of rain than snow. I get it: snow looks nice and it’s sort of fun, for a while, to watch the players slip, slide and fumble around the field.

It’s all great. But to me, nothing beats a good gully washer of a rain storm. I love watching games were rain is pouring down on the players and fans are getting soaked.

It’s not likely well see anything that dramatic this weekend, but rain showers are forecasted for many of the NFL cities. And for you snow fans, there is mention of the white stuff for games in Kansas City and, of course, Green Bay, where if you look right now (2:20 p.m., Friday, Dec. 20, 2013), you’ll see Lambeau is already covered.

So, without further gibberish – I love that word – here are your forecasts for this week’s 14 NFL outdoor games.

Dolphins at Bills: High of 51/Rain

Colts at Chiefs: High of 25/Chance of light snow

Vikings at Bengals: High of 58/Rain likely

Cowboys at Redskins: High of 73 (Wow! In December?) / Showers likely

Browns at Jets: High of 64/chance of showers (And a good chance Geno will turn the ball over at least three times.)

Saints at Panthers: High of 73/Showers

Titans at Jaguars: High of 81/Patchy fog (I’d love to see another Fog Bowl, but not for the Titans and Jags.)

Broncos at Texans: High of 68/Mostly sunny (If Peyton Manning stinks this week –that’s unlikely against the two-win Texans – no one can blame the temperature.)

Cardinals at Seahawks: High of 48/Rain likely (Great! I love the look of the Seahawks playing at home in the rain.)

Steelers at Packers: High 25/Snow (The low for Green Bay Sunday night is -3. Burrrrr!)

Raiders at Chargers: High of 67/Sunny

Patriots at Ravens: High 71/showers likely

Sunday Night
Bears at Eagles: Low of 33/Showers likely (The high in Philly Sunday should hit around 71.)

Monday Night

Falcons at 49ers: Low of 48/Mostly clear

-- rain --

Do the Lambeau shovel

Lambeau Field webcam

It’s that time of year when lots of snow pours down on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field and the Packers organization asks fans to come out to help shovel the seats and aisles.

With three inches of snow expected to hit Green Bay, the Packers are paying up to 650 folks 10 bucks an hour to shovel snow to prepare the stadium for Sunday’s game with the Steelers.

If you look right now at the Lambeau web cam, you can see the shovelers.

This just in: Aaron Rodgers has not been medically cleared to shovel today.

-- snow --

Yeah, It's Cold in Wisconsin

When you look at the NFL schedule and notice that the Green Bay Packers are playing on a Monday night in December, one question immediately pops to mind: Will there be snow?

According to the National Weather Service, there is a chance, a small chance, of white stuff falling on Lambeau Field. And if it does snow, no accumulation is expected.

Bummer!

However, it is Green Bay in December, so you know it’s going to be frostier than Thanksgiving dinner at Elin and Tiger’s house. At the moment, the 10-day forecast is calling for temps to dip to about 25 degrees.

Hold on.

Ok. Vince Lombardi just called and said that sounds like a heat wave.

Anyway, Tom Silverstein has a story in the Journal Sentinel today about the Packers’ remaining frostbitten schedule, which includes road games in Chicago and Pittsburgh and a game back at Lambeau against the Seahawks.

And Kevin Cowherd of The Baltimore Sun advises Ravens players to stay close to the bench heaters Monday night.

The photo above is from the AP. Thanks, guys.

Green Bay Just Got Colder

Brett Favre, who played his home games on the Frozen Tundra and once was regarded as the best ever cold-weather quarterback, called it a quits today after 17 NFL seasons that included three MVPs and a Super Bowl title. Somewhere John Madden weeps and Frank Caliendo giddily works up new comic material.

Anyone Else Missing Football?

Benchgate Mystery Closed

I just got an update on the Giants cold benches situation Sunday night. Remember Pam Oliver mentioned during a sideline report that the Giants heated benches were not working and uttered the words bench gate? Holy cow! G. Gordon Liddy hates it when people suffix the name of a controversy with the word "gate." Anyway, I just read Neil Best's column in Newsday, and Best wrote that the G-Men rented high-powered heated benches for their own and the benches stopped working only momentarily. Oliver, however, never mentioned the situation again, leaving TV viewers to wonder if the Packers had pulled the plugs on the benches. (Hold on. Donovan McNabb is on the phone. What's that Donovan? No, I think Pam Oliver is a fine sideline reporter.) Anyway, the New York Post, which is still taking credit for the Giants win over the Cowboys, confirmed in a report today that Big Blue had rented four heated benches from a Cleveland construction company and the benches "malfunctioned early in the game before the situation was corrected." Mystery solved.

Bikini Weather At Lambeau

I've been away from my computer for the past several days and haven't had time to post anything about the frostbitten NFC Championship game from Sunday. I wasn't at the game, but all accounts indicate it was kinda cold at Lambeau Field. The images broadcast on my TV made Lambeau look like quite a cold place to be. But don't tell that to these girls. I was warm and comfortable in my living room.

Anyway, as you know already, last week was filled with media reports about football and weather. It was nice to a point, but I have to admit that even I, a sports weather junkie, got a bit of an overdose. But I did enjoy the game and all the in-game weather talk built into the broadcast.

That reminds me, at one point there was a report from the Giants sideline about the team's heated benches not working. (I think I heard Pam Oliver toss out the word Bench-gate. Jeez!) But I never heard any more about this. I probably just missed further explanation. I did hear G-men punter Jeff Feagles this morning on some radio show (Mike and Mike or Czabe, I can't remember) talking about having heated benches. So, I'm guessing the benches eventually got some juice. If anyone knows more about this, drop me a note in the comments section.

That's it for me. Have a good day and stay warm. It's an un-Lambeau-like 36 degrees in my neighborhood.

Packers Warn Fans of Hypothermia

Packers fans are the best, aren’t they? Well, with the exception of that dude who taped a Packers jersey to his son. Anyway, Pack fans prepared Lambeau Field for Sunday's NFC title game with the New York Giants by shoveling snow out of the stands Thursday night. I guess it's that or sit on snow, right? Packers fans do this about every year, but I think this is the first time I've mentioned it here. Hell, weather is all the sports media are talking about this week, so I'm not telling you anything you haven't heard already. In the meantime, the Packers are urging fans to dress for super cold temperatures Sunday. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:42 Green Bay time and the forecast calls for a low of zero. If you need some tips as to what to wear, check here. The instructions are thorough. Below is an example. Sounds scary.

Dress appropriately: Hypothermia and frostbite can occur even without subzero temperatures. Wear loose, dry layers, but don't overdress. Give yourself the opportunity to shed layers to adjust to weather changes. Try a mix of cotton or wool underneath, with something waterproof on top.

Pitchers and Catchers To Follow

I mentioned below that pitchers and catchers report to spring training in about a month partly because I'm jonesing for some baseball and partly because I like searching for and posting baseball rain delay photos like the one you see here. This year I may run a pool taking bets on which MLB ballpark will suffer the first rain out. Maybe not.

Anyway, I'm still very much into the NFL playoffs and the potential for another bad weather game in Green Bay Sunday when the Packers host the New York Football Giants. I'm not sure which team I want to win, but I'll be rooting for the NFC in Super Bowl. I have a strong feeling Brett Favre and the Packers will get the job done against the G-Men and Eli Manning, who usually has trouble playing in bad weather conditions, particularly when it's windy. I think I've written about that before. Scroll down and check me on that.

T.O., Cowboys and Popcorn Sales Plummet

For all of you disappointed Cowboys fans out there who also are die-hard football fans, look at things this way: At least now you and the rest of us will have an opportunity to enjoy another cold, wintry game at Lambeau Field. Saturday's Pack win over the Seahawks provided some great images, like the one here. We hope Sunday's NFC title game will do the same. Of course the game is still a week away, but early forecasts are calling for a high of 11 degrees, a low of 8 and a 40 percent chance of precipitation when the Packers and Giants kickoff at 5:30 Green Bay time. I can't wait. Get your popcorn ready!

Performance Enhancing Pants

Seattle kicker Josh Brown will be packing heat Saturday… in his pants. Brown and the Seahawks face the Packers Saturday in the NFC divisional playoffs at Green Bay's Lambeau Field, where temperatures are expected be in the high 20s. The kicker said Wednesday on a radio show that he plans to wear the battery-operated heaters in rain pants that he normally wears on the sidelines, not in his football pants. "Not in my uniform. That would be crazy," Brown told reporters Wednesday afternoon. Brown says he's not looking to gain an advantage, just stay warm.

Instant (Winter) Classic

Winter is not a good time to take holiday from a sports weather blog. So much happened while I was away, but hey, you can't spend all you precious time blogging, right? Right? By far the coolest sports weather event over the holidays was the NHL's Winter Classic outdoor game in Buffalo. By now you've all read and seen highlights of what was a hugely successful show for a league in deep need of some positive publicity. So, I'm not going to bore you with any of my asinine observations. But, isn't that what blogs are for? Anyway, as you know, the Winter Classic visuals, on television and in photographs, were and are spectacular. The snow element kicked the drama into overdrive. Let's hope the NHL decides to stage the event annually – at least do it every two years – and spread it around to different cities. I hear NBC had originally wanted the game to be in Yankees Stadium with the Rangers playing the Bruins. That would have been great, too, but Buffalo turned out to be a majestic venue for the inaugural outdoor game. Maybe next year the game can be played in either the old or new Yankees Stadium. Oh, and wouldn't you love to see the Blackhawks host the Red Wings in Soldier Field? Lambeau Field already has hosted a college outdoor game, so the folks there know the logistics of staging such an event. The question is: What two teams would play there? Minnesota Wild versus…who?

One more thing: I didn't realize until reading the Uniwatch Blog yesterday that snow now has fallen on NHL, NFL and Major League Baseball games in the past nine months. Remember Jacobs Field in April? Now, how can we cause a snow storm inside an NBA arena? I bet some Chinese meteorologists would know how.

The Snow Has Arrived

The forecasted bad weather has arrived for today's Spy vs. Spy game in Foxbrough. Check out this photo captured at 9:26 a.m. from a Web cam inside Gillette Stadium. I don't know about you, but I'm rooting for an upset. J-E-T-S, Jets! Jets! Jets!

Speaking stadium snow captured by Web cams, Lambeau Field is banketed with white stuff this morning. Alas, the Packers are playing in the controlled climate of, uh, that dome in St, Louis, whatever it's name is. I'm rooting for the Packers, and especially Brett Favre, who is leading my fantasy team into the playoffs today.

Slacker Update

To all my loyal international readers, I apologize for being a slacker and not making many posts over the past month. It is, you know, the holiday season, and that's always a busy time.

There have been plenty of football games with rain and some with snow and ice. (Did you hear the Packers had fans shoveling snow at Lambeau Field last week? That would have been a perfect post for this blog. Oh, well.)

I didn't fell like posting photos of soggy football games just to update the blog. However, that's sort of what I'm doing today. In fact, that's exactly what I'm doing today.

The above photo is of the other football – we call it soccer here in the States – and it features Wayne Rooney of Manchester United during an EPL game with Derby County at Old Trafford Saturday. ManU won 4-0.

I promise to chime back in later with more sports/weather news. Good night, Dubai.

Lambeau All Wet

Judging from the Green Bay Packers Tailgate Cam, it’s pouring rain at Lambeau Field. And they need to install wipers on that camera. What’s the big deal you ask. It’s April and there’s no game at Lambeau any time soon, you say. Well, the team is installing a new turf, and as you can see on the stadium cam, the field is gone. I’m sure the workers are under a strict schedule to get the new turf installed. The new field still will be natural grass, but will be reinforced with synthetic fibers. A new drainage and heating system is being installed, too. The Packers assure their fans that this new turf will not diminish the legend of Lambeau, saying that the field will continue to get muddy and will freeze. It is the same turf used by the Steelers, Eagles and Broncos.