The Chicago Bears and the Los Angeles Rams are set for one of the coldest NFL games this season with temperatures in the teens and the “feels like” temperatures dipping below zero degrees. That’s just part of the story though. NFL teams are prepared for bitter cold temperatures. Not just with heated fields, but with improved technology that actually keeps players warm during the game itself.
One of the most improved pieces of technology is the heated benches. The benches players sit on are heated, making it extremely comfortable despite uncomfortable temperatures. They also come with helmet warmers and feet warmers, keeping players as warm as possible in between their snaps.
Most applicable to northern teams, here's the tech those organizations have had to adopt thanks to a climate not suitable for deep-winter games.
What types of technology exist to keep players warm on the sideline?
- Heated benches (with heated helmet holders and foot warmers)
- Radiant heaters
- Portable blowers
- Compression gear
- Insulated sideline jackets
- Heated handwarmers
- Vaseline
Heated benches
The heated benches have evolved, especially with the helmet warmers. Those white pipes on the backrest of the bench aren't just a convenient place to put down a helmet. "Hot Hats" keep helmets at an appropriate temperature so players can put them on without them cracking — remember what happened with Patrick Mahomes a few years ago in the playoffs?
The benches themselves are also warmed. Dragon Seats supplies custom benches fitted with multiple sources of heat. Just sitting on fiberglass helps warm players from behind. As for the front, there are also foot decks that blow warm air up from below.
Radiant heaters and portable blowers
The giant fans you might see players huddling around on the sideline during cold games are propane blower heaters. You might be used to seeing radiant heaters at restaurants, but those are nothing compared to the big guns the NFL brings out. Those heaters safe to touch but blast out enough heat to keep a couple dozen people warm.
Teams can also rely on smaller radiant heaters to help players keep their hands warm.
Layers: Compression gear and insulated sideline jackets
Those big jackets you see quarterbacks wearing on the sidelines: They’re fleece-lined and waterproof, which is ideal for near sub-zero temperatures and possible snow. With massive wind gusts, it makes it a little more bearable.
That's just the outer shell though. Players follow basic layering principles, with compression base layers, and insulated mid layers. Depending on preference, they can add gaiters, balaclavas, beanies, socks, gloves, etch.
Heated hand warmers
When gloves alone won't do the trick, a player can always wear a muff, essentially a pocket around their waist to put their hands into. They can be stuffed with hand warmer packets or have built in heating.
And yeah, the same hand warmers the fans probably have stuffed in their pockets certainly come in handy on an NFL sideline.
Vaseline
Tough guys don't need to wear layers, but that doesn't mean they're exposing their skin to the elements completely. Players often use Vaseline or similar products as a shield against the wind and a way to retain more heat.
How much cold-weather franchises invest in advanced technology
Although it’s hard to find how much teams invest in sideline technology, one piece that is widely used among cold-weather franchises is the heated fields, or radiant heating. The Kansas City Chiefs installed one a few years back, and it cost upwards of $2 million. It’s a boiler system that has piping that lines the field beneath the surface.
It’s a system that makes the playing surface more bearable with frigid temperatures, keeping the grass field temps around 50-60 degrees and preventing the ground from freezing. The Bears have a heated playing surface as well.
How will the weather affect Divisional Round games in the NFL?
The temperatures will be cold all weekend with the Sunday night game between the Rams and Bears being the coldest, with temperatures under 20 degrees at kickoff. The New England Patriots will have a stark difference in temperatures at around 38 degrees during the day. Though there will be some possible snow, it won’t be nearly as cold as the Chicago game. Sunday’s games will be the coldest games of the weekend with Denver hovering around 53 degrees on Saturday and Seattle around 51 degrees with a low of 37.
This weekend won’t nearly be as cold as the wildcard weekend which saw just about every game be affected by the cold, save for the Carolina Panthers-LA Rams game. That said, for the games that will have some miserable weather, at least the franchises have invested into some sideline comfort that will make the game less insufferable.