10 toughest NFL stadiums to play in for road teams

Not all stadiums, or fans, are created equal — we take a look at the 10 toughest places to play on the road in the NFL.

Every sports team believes that home-field advantage, but not all are created equal. In fact, some home stadiums often feel dead or even as if the road team is more favored amongst the patrons (we’re looking at you, Chargers fans).

So, which teams have the stadiums & crowds which create the most difficulty for road teams to compete in?

10. Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta Falcons

When the Atlanta Falcons finished their new $1.6 billion stadium in 2017, it was immediately billed as one of the crown jewels of stadiums in the country. While the stadium is smaller than many others on the list, seating just 46,692 patrons, the construction design maximizes crowd noise and makes it a formidable home field for the Falcons, and an excellent venue for the other various events hosted there.

But, like any good home field, the most important component here is the fans. Football fans in Georgia are rabid about their football, and their Falcons are near (or at) the top of that list. The echoing nature of the noise makes it seem louder and more prolific than it is, which makes it incredibly daunting for opposing quarterbacks to operate in, especially in contemporary offenses that rely heavily on shifts and audibles at the line.

In 2020, the Falcons will lose a significant amount of this advantage, however, as they’ve announced they’ll only have around 10,000 fans in the stands for home games amid the Coronavirus outbreak. We imagine they won’t be the only team that deals with this reality – but certainly being indoors hurts them perhaps worse than some others.