Temperatures are dropping, but the intensity on the gridiron is heating up.
With the final stretch of the NFL season approaching, teams will have to battle the elements along with their opponents.
While many teams have the comforts of warm weather or roofed stadiums, others have to brace for Mother Nature when it comes to late-season competition.
The Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns are both accustomed to chilly temperatures and blustering winds, but even by their standards, they will face a daunting forecast in Week 15. The NBC 5 Storm Team predicts the game-time temperature in the single digits at Soldier Field on Sunday with possible wind chills 10-to-15 degrees below zero.
How does that compare to the coldest games in NFL history? Let’s look back at the five games with the most frigid temperatures:
5. Dec. 10, 1972: Packers vs. Vikings
The coldest regular season game in NFL history was held at Minnesota’s Metropolitan Stadium in 1972 when the Vikings hosted the rival Green Bay Packers.
The game-time temperature was 0 degrees with wind chills of minus-18 degrees, and the Packers rolled to a 23-7 victory.
4. Jan. 20, 2008: Giants vs. Packers — NFC Championship Game
They call Lambeau Field the “Frozen Tundra” for a reason.
The Packers hosted the New York Giants for the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 20, 2008, with a game-time temperature of minus-4 degrees and wind chills that felt like minus-24 degrees.
The Giants beat the Packers on an overtime field goal and stunned the football world two weeks later by taking down the then-undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.
3. Jan. 10, 2016: Seahawks vs. Vikings — Wild card game
The Vikings moved out of Metropolitan Stadium after the 1981 season and have enjoyed more than four decades of indoor home games between the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (1982-2013) and U.S. Bank Stadium (2016-present). Looking back, the last outdoor game played in Minnesota will make them appreciate the indoors that much more.
The team welcomed the Seattle Seahawks to TCF Bank Stadium, home of the University of Minnesota football team, for a wild card game with the kickoff temperature at minus-6 degrees and wind chills around minus-25 degrees. The game was played at the stadium while their new home, U.S. Bank Stadium, was under construction.
For Vikings fans, perhaps the only thing colder than the temperature was the ending of the game, as Blair Walsh missed a 27-yard, go-ahead field goal in the final seconds to give the Seahawks a 10-9 win.
2. Jan. 10, 1982: Chargers vs. Bengals — AFC Championship Game
We’ve now reached nickname territory, with the “Freezer Bowl” coming in at No. 2.
The San Diego Chargers visited the Cincinnati Bengals for the AFC Championship Game on Jan. 10, 1982, with a trip to Super Bowl XVI up for grabs. The gametime temperature was a bitter minus-9 degrees, but it was the wind chill that took the game to new extremes at minus-59 degrees.
The Bengals gave the freezing fans plenty to cheer about, as they earned a 26-7 victory and their first ever Super Bowl appearance.
1. Dec. 31, 1967: Cowboys vs. Packers — NFL Championship
We go from the “Freezer Bowl” to the “Ice Bowl” for No. 1.
Lambeau Field was the site of the coldest game in NFL history, where the Packers battled the Dallas Cowboys in minus-13 degrees on New Year’s Eve in 1967. The negative-teens temperature was compounded by a wind chill of minus-48 degrees.
The Packers won their third straight NFL Championship with a 21-17 victory and successfully defending their Super Bowl crown two weeks later by defeating the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl II.
The multi-platinum, GRAMMY Award-winning singer stars in the musical show opening for NBC’s Sunday Night Football for the 13th consecutive NFL season.
