The NFL and player (and fan) safety

The “dangerously cold” conditions expected here through Tuesday are so alarming to the National Weather Service that the group has issued a wind chill warning that runs through Tuesday.

“The cold wind chills could cause frostbite on exposed skin in as little as 30 minutes,” the NWS announced.

For the vast majority of the 76,000 or so people expected here for Saturday night’s Miami Dolphins vs. Kansas City Chiefs Wild Card Game, they’ll be outside for way longer than that.

Which means that there’s a potential health risk involved with simply attending just the third Dolphins playoff game since 2008.

The temperatures at kickoff are expected to be at or below zero. Stiff winds could make the feels-like minus-30. Missouri has turned into Alaska.

And yet, the NFL is going ahead with the game as planned — just like the Bills are still going to host the Steelers in potential blizzard conditions.

Not surprisingly, there isn’t a lot of demand among even the heartiest of fans to sit outside for three hours on Saturday.

Secondary market ticket prices cratered throughout the week. You could get into Arrowhead for as cheap as $40 Friday — and with significant inventory still available, expect those prices to drop even more the closer we get to kickoff.

The Chiefs, in an effort to keep their paying customers warm and safe, sent out a best practices tip sheet Friday.

They’re allowing game-goers to bring in blankets and sealed water bottles and are offering warming stations both in the parking lots and throughout the stadium.  (Of course, those water bottles better get consumed quickly before they turn rock hard.)

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While you’ll see some Dolphins players without sleeves and gloves (and maybe even without a shirt pregame), they’ll have everything they need on the sidelines to stay safe.

Plus, they’ll have natural body heat once they start moving.

That won’t be the case for those in the stands.

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The Chiefs could have avoided this by building a stadium with a roof.

And the NFL could have avoided this by moving the game to somewhere warmer. They have changed venues before due to extreme conditions. If there are any negative health outcomes on Saturday, the blame will be theirs.

finfanatic wrote:There is no way in heck I would pay to go to a game when it is that cold if I had to sit outside!