NFL Football Is Just Better in the Snow

Some sports are just made for the snow. College basketball starts to ramp up when the flakes start to fall, and that's certainly one of them. It's just not played outside. 

Even hockey, especially here in Boston, is starting to make what could be called a comeback. The winter classic in the snow is amazing to watch for certain. The NBA is looking to lay claim to Christmas the way the NFL does to Thanksgiving.

Yet, what we witnessed this weekend is why football is played best in the winter months.

The weather made it nearly impossible for me and many other New Englanders to venture far outside on Saturday and Sunday, and it gave me time to actually watch more football than I had in several weeks. After all was said and done, I remembered exactly why the snow makes things interesting.

You can go back every year for likely two or three decades and find games impacted by weather, and great (or awful) memories alongside them. As a Dolphins fan, I've seen both sides that I can recall vividly. The first, the Leon Lett Game, was replayed all weekend as one of the moments in Texas Stadium history.

The other I got to slightly relive on Sunday. Miami went late in the season to New England for a crucial game that saw Dave "The 'Stache" Wannstedt screw up the fourth quarter. The snow-covered stadium responded to a late-game touchdown by throwing snow balls in the air in time to the music.

Impressive when you think about it, especially given the alcohol that had been consumed at that point.

I don't remember the game from 1982, but the Pats and Dolphins played the infamous "Snowplow Game" in Foxboro. Here, a snowplow cleared the way for a field goal to win the game for New England. The final score: 3-0.

In 2007, the Browns played the Bills in blizzard-like conditions out in Buffalo. Of course, that's ten months a year in western New York. Still, the 8-0 Cleveland win represents what you expect from that type of environment.

You could write a book from Green Bay's games alone. Last season, in the playoffs, we saw the Packers put up 42 points, Brett Favre throw for three touchdowns, and Ryan Grant go off for 200 yards rushing in the victory over Seattle. In 1967, we had the infamous Ice Bowl.

That's without even mentioning Steve Young's induction into the cold weather and his subsequent face plant to the Lambeau Field turf. That was back when he was with the Bucs in the mid-1980s.

In 1976, the Steelers beat Cincinnati 7-3 in a game that saw the Steelers attempt over 40 runs while throwing only 15 passes. If we're writing a book on the Packers exploits, we could certainly add several chapters on the Steelers' games in the weather as well.

And, just to throw some fuel on a burning fire, who can forget the Tuck Rule game in the playoffs?

All that brings me to this weekend. As I watched the cars head down Route 1 toward the Patriots game, you just got a feeling it was going to be fun to watch. Sure, the score was ugly and the Cardinals (almost understandably) mailed it in. Yet, we got to see one team line up and run the football, and snowballs tossed in the air in the stands.

We even got to see Wes Welker make a snow angel.

That's football. It's why baseball teams should build domed stadiums (like the Twins should be doing) and football games should be played outdoors (like the Vikings should be doing, minus-30-degree wind chill and all).

It's why warm weather teams seem to fail miserably in the playoffs. They just aren't tough enough to go outdoors. I'm talking to you, Arizona. It's why dome games just aren't that exciting, and it's why I'm glad that they didn't put a retractable roof on the stadium in Seattle.

This was the highlight to my weekend. I love Seattle fans. Maybe it's partly because my grandfather still walks around in his Seahawks jacket. The game against the Jets, though, gave me a deeper appreciation.

Here's a team completely out of it. Yet, they all show up in some of the worst weather Seattle has seen all year. Not only do they make a huge difference in the noise volume, they found time to build a snowman in the stands, complete with peanuts for a mouth.

Regardless of the end result this season, we have the lasting image of Josh Wilson throwing snow in the air to celebrate his interception, basically sealing the win for the Seahawks.

With the playoffs just around the corner, we're in line for one more game to join a list of great snow games. And, tonight, we get to watch two teams battle it out in Chicago. In the middle of December.

Man, I love football.