Two wild card games are likely to take place under adverse conditions. It’s freezing cold in Kansas City and snowing heavily in Buffalo. In addition, there are wintry winds in both places. Former professional Mark Nzeocha has already played his playoff game in the fridge. It wasn’t pretty. But successful

Cold, colder, Kansas City – at least in terms of hosting the Wild Card Games in the NFL, the city of the defending champions is serving up the iciest temperatures this weekend. Including the expected winds, it is expected to feel as cold as -31 degrees Celsius around the Arrowhead Stadium.

Much to the chagrin of the fans. The Chiefs. But especially the Miami Dolphins, who have to travel from warm Florida to Missouri for the game. “It’s definitely going to be a factor,” “The home team has an advantage, they’re used to the climate, the players have had a week to train and adjust in this climate.”

The ex-pro, who played for the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers between 2015 and 2021, almost feels a little sorry for Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill & Co.: “Then you have the guys from South Beach who aren’t used to this weather. They are very reliant on their passing game, which is simply more difficult.”

The 33-year-old speaks from experience. Because in the 2021 Divisional Round, he had to play in a Niners jersey in the icebox at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers. “That was really cold too. It was definitely over -10, maybe even -15 degrees,” he recalls.

And he continues: “We went in there as underdogs and destroyed the thing. As the home team, you think you have the advantage because you train in these conditions all week.” The Californians won 13:10 in a laborious game with less than 500 total yards.

Nzeocha on cold weather game: “Routine pulled off “

Nzeocha emphasizes that the team didn’t make any major changes in preparation: “Head coach Kyle Shanahan didn’t make a big issue of it. He just said we can’t change the weather conditions, we’re here to win a playoff game. So don’t worry about it. It is what it is. We arrived as normal and went through our routine.”

The Ansbach-born player believes it is only important to prepare mentally for the conditions. And to dress properly: “You have to have the right cleats on, you wear thicker socks and thicker compression shirts to keep your body temperature warm. On the sidelines, you have the warm benches and heat turbines, or even the warm jackets.”

Another tip from the linebacker and special teamer, who currently lives in Texas, is: “If you don’t have your helmet on, put it on a heater so that it’s still soft inside when you put it back on. If you sit in the cold with your helmet on, the pads inside get hard as a rock.”

He doesn’t remember whether he played with long sleeves back then, but: “A lot of guys play without sleeves, so arm-free. Then you put Vaseline on your arms to close the pores and then you don’t feel the cold at all.”

Speaking of not feeling the cold: that also applies when you’re in the game. “Then it’s secondary,” explains Nzeocha.