Freezer Bowl

[FootballCard Wall]

With some cold games this weekend, I did some follow up on the Freezer Bowl AFC Championship game between the Bengals & Chargers prior to Super Bowl 16. Outside of the obvious storylines for the game, being the freezing cold, and the Chargers coming off the thrilling OT win in Miami the week prior, two things stood out to me:

1) No way in the world that game gets played today. Not because of the weather, but because of the field. The makeshift astroturf over the baseball dirt in those multi-sport stadiums simply wouldn't fly. If recent games got cancelled like the Hall of Fame game in 2016 and the Mexico City game in 2019, there's no way the NFL lets an AFC Championship game get played.

2) That game was one of the very few where the same team kicked off to start both halves. Instead of electing to kick or receive the opening kickoff, Sam Wyche elected to have the wind with him to start the game. San Diego then elected to get the ball for the second half kickoff, with the same wind against them.

[Jay Z]

Though in game snow and rain can still provide challenges to footing, the issues with iced up fields appear to be a thing of the past. I don't remember seeing a field like 1975 AFC Championship game or Mistake By The Lake for a number of years.

[Ness]

With some cold games this weekend, I did some follow up on the Freezer Bowl AFC Championship game between the Bengals & Chargers prior to Super Bowl 16. Outside of the obvious storylines for the game, being the freezing cold, and the Chargers coming off the thrilling OT win in Miami the week prior, two things stood out to me:

1) No way in the world that game gets played today. Not because of the weather, but because of the field. The makeshift astroturf over the baseball dirt in those multi-sport stadiums simply wouldn't fly. If recent games got cancelled like the Hall of Fame game in 2016 and the Mexico City game in 2019, there's no way the NFL lets an AFC Championship game get played.

2) That game was one of the very few where the same team kicked off to start both halves. Instead of electing to kick or receive the opening kickoff, Sam Wyche elected to have the wind with him to start the game. San Diego then elected to get the ball for the second half kickoff, with the same wind against them.

Yes I was thinking about this game a lot leading up to this weekend with the discourse surrounding the Bills/Steelers, and Chiefs/Dolphins games. Also had the same feeling that there is no way that game gets played in today's era. There was so much chatter about this weekends game's weather for safety concern, and that AFC game was way worse weather-wise.

That might be the one champ game between teams I'm not a main fan of, that I continuously enjoy going back to. Even if it was a blowout.

[JuggernautJ]

Both of the Eagles back-to-back Championships (1948&49) were played under atrocious conditions.

1948 Championship in Philly: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948_NFL_ ... nship_Game
Due to heavy snowfall, the grounds crew needed the help of players from both teams to remove the tarp from the field. The opening kickoff was delayed a half-hour until 2 p.m., and three extra officials were called into service to assist with out-of-bounds calls. The stadium lights were also turned on for the entire game.

The game (also known as the Philly Blizzard) was played in Philadelphia during a significant snowstorm. Bert Bell, the NFL commissioner (and former Eagles owner), had considered postponing the game, but the players for both teams wanted to play the game. The snow began at daybreak and by kickoff the accumulation was 4 inches (10 cm) at a temperature of 27 °F (−3 °C).

Steve Van Buren almost didn't attend the game as he didn't think it could possibly be played in that weather... fortunately, as he scored the only points in the game, he decided to take the trolley to Shibe Park anyway...
After seeing snow blanketing his suburban Philadelphia neighborhood early Sunday morning, Van Buren went back to sleep, figuring the game would be postponed. Then Neale called his 27-year-old star, inquiring about his whereabouts. “The game is still on,” he told Van Buren, “so you’d better get here.”
With the snow deeper in the Philly suburbs, trapping his car in the driveway, Van Buren had to use public transportation to get to the game. He caught a bus, trolley and subway. Then he walked six blocks to make it to the stadium in time to put on his No. 15 jersey for the 1:30 p.m. game.
https://www.history.com/news/nfl-champi ... -game-1948

1949 Championship in L.A.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1949_NFL_ ... nship_Game
...is remembered for the driving rain that caused the field to become a mud pit.... the players and owners wanted to postpone the game for a week, but were overridden by Commissioner Bert Bell, reached at home in Philadelphia.

[Citizen]

I think we'd better get used to scenarios like the one in Buffalo. It's become relatively commonplace to suspend games and clear out fans when there's lightning near the stadium, and to cut exhibition games short when weather conditions dictate it. Now a playoff game has been rescheduled. Such moves will offend macho purists, I'm sure, but the NFL is overdue in at least making a concession to the safety of both players and fans in situations like that.

[Mark]

Even though the NFL is more willing to postpone games I don't think history quite supports the perception of the macho purists. Yes they played these NFL championship games in bad weather plenty of fans stayed home. The 1937, 1945, 1948, and 1949 games had attendance dampened by the weather. Maybe other also? It also used to seem that cold weather teams had their playoff games scheduled as the early games but now the NFL is more willing to put them at night when the temperature drops. I also noticed that the Packers used to have many of their home games in the first half of the season and went on the road in the second half. I assume that was to try to an avoid the cold in Green Bay?

[Citizen]

I also noticed that the Packers used to have many of their home games in the first half of the season and went on the road in the second half. I assume that was to try to an avoid the cold in Green Bay?

Partly, also so that Green Bay could take care of their annual games at Los Angeles and San Francisco with a single December road trip.

[GameBeforeTheMoney]

Don't forget that the first NFL championship game was played indoors.

[Crazy Packers Fan]

That game was one of the very few where the same team kicked off to start both halves. Instead of electing to kick or receive the opening kickoff, Sam Wyche elected to have the wind with him to start the game. San Diego then elected to get the ball for the second half kickoff, with the same wind against them.

Nice catch. I always think about the 1986 NFC Championship Game where Washington never kicked off the entire game, with Parcells taking the wind one half, and Washington never scoring.

I think the NFL is going to move to neutral-site, dome conference championship games in the not-so-far future. I think they saw what a bonanza they would have had in Atlanta last season had Buffalo made it. It may sound sacrilegious that home-field advantage will go away, but keep in mind that home field for the championship game was pre-determined from the 1930s to the mid-1970s. It would be the NFL's version of the College Football Playoff. And it'll succeed, just like everything else the NFL does these days.

[Todd Pence]

2) That game was one of the very few where the same team kicked off to start both halves. Instead of electing to kick or receive the opening kickoff, Sam Wyche elected to have the wind with him to start the game. San Diego then elected to get the ball for the second half kickoff, with the same wind against them.

Interesting that Sam Wyche was called upon to make this decision, since at the time as a member of the 49ers staff he was in San Fran helping prep his team for the NFC title game later that day.