Bad news: The Miami Dolphins coach has confirmed yet another horrific injury that could result in the death of a key player.
January 10: The Miami Dolphins could have stayed in South Florida and played an AFC wild-card game in temperatures close to 80 degrees if they had only managed to hold onto a fourth-quarter lead in the season finale.
Instead, after watching the lead slip away, the Dolphins gathered portable heaters, parkas, gloves, and a strategy for
handling the weather and Arrowhead when they play the Chiefs at Arrowhead on Saturday night. Single-digit temperatures are predicted, along with heavy snowfall in the days before.
With kickoff taking place at night, the predicted high temperature of 9 degrees in Kansas City on Saturday is undoubtedly going to be lower. The low is expected to be minus 5.
The Chiefs appear to have a significant advantage, but head coach Andy Reid isn’t interested in talking about it.
“You cannot rely on it. You get into trouble there, Reid told reporters on Tuesday. “We’re not having a snowball fight.”
Under Reid/Patrick Mahomes, the third-seeded Chiefs (11-6) have prospered when playing in the postseason at home.
Even if the weather is more appropriate for a Nordic skiing or luge competition, the sixth-seeded Dolphins (11-6) won’t have it any easier.
Mike McDaniel, the coach of Miami, stated that his team is prepared for any weather, no matter how cold it gets.
“If we’re playing in any playoff game that isn’t at home, it probably will be cold,” McDaniel stated. For both teams, it will be the same. I’m sure they won’t use that as an excuse for us or the people in the locker room.”
The tight end for the Dolphins, Durham Smythe, who was born in Pennsylvania, made the observation that players in the NFL come from all over the country and have faced difficult circumstances during their careers.
“I don’t think it means that we are soft or scared of the elements, just because the weather is better down here,” Smythe stated regarding Miami. “Obviously, the guys in that locker room are from all over the place as well. It’s not as though any of us have spent our entire lives in Miami. We’ve previously dealt with elements.”
