Cold Favors the Giants

[The Leaper]

Can't remember...did Green Bay put the heating coils back down when they redid the field? Won't make it warmer but it might make it less like concrete when you fall on it?

I believe there is a heating coil, but I think it is used now just to keep the root area warm so the grass will grow all year long. I don't think it is capable of actually warming the surface of the field.

[Deputy Nutz]

McCarthy keeps practicimg indoors. They ought to have at least one outdoor session.

Practice like you are going play.

They turn off the heat and open the doors in the Don Hutson Center. Brings the cold into play but keeps the elements away.

[FritzDontBlitz]

Cold also has an adverse effect on a banged up team. Its hard to stay loose in colder weather, and injuries are more difficult to ignore. The Giants are nursing a ton of injuries, and their defense had to endure some very time consuming drives in Dallas. The Giants kind of remind me of how Green Bay was going into their game with the Cowboys: hobbled, worn down and taking a road that inflicted a much tougher physical toll to get to the NFC Championship, while Green Bay has a healthy, well-rested team that cruised at home against what was supposed to be a formidable defensive front for the Seattle Seahawks. I am looking forward to seeing how Plaxico Burress runs on a frozen field with a bad ankle. I am also looking forward to seeing the Giants defenders take on Ryan Grant's punishing run style. I am looking forward to seeing Eli handle the pressure of being on the road playing in the biggest game of his career.

As long as there's no serious wind issues the Packers will be fine. 8 in the box to shut down their running game. Eli is nowhere near as improved as everyone claims he is, if he was Coughlin would have let him pass more later in the game to put it away. Instead, they kept giving the ball back to Dallas and caught a break when Romo aand Crayton choked down the stretch.

Packers win 24-10.

[Cheesehead Craig]

I don't think the cold will really affect the passing game much. I don't see the gameplan changing due to it. The ball doesn't carry as much in the cold, and thus that is where Favre's arm strength comes into play. If our WR corps had a history of drops I'd be worried about the cold, but they've proven to have great hands.

[Tarlam!]

I also watched the Giants beat the Boys in 1000 degree heat.

Now THAT is HOT!!

From what your boyfriend told me, you're even hotter....

[GrnBay007]

I also watched the Giants beat the Boys in 1000 degree heat.

Now THAT is HOT!!

From what your boyfriend told me, you're even hotter....

boyfriend? since you must know him better than I do, tell him to get me season tickets for the Packers next year. :P

[pasquale]

Possibly, but a qb with the hands the size of Favre this should not be an issue.

let's not forget about favre's huge balls....those help pick up needed 3rd downs...

[Jimx29]

Possibly, but a qb with the hands the size of Favre this should not be an issue.

Yep, that was mentioned on ESPN as one of the pro's for this game...the size of his hands and his arm strength.

It's been reported that he can also "palm" a baseball with his toes

Can't remember...did Green Bay put the heating coils back down when they redid the field? Won't make it warmer but it might make it less like concrete when you fall on it?

I believe that they are not turned on during games. If i'm not mistaken, it's because the NFL doesn't allow them to.

[FritzDontBlitz]

I think the weather is already a factor in New York, because the media there is already doing stories about how the Giants are trying to prepare for it:

http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/17/inside-the-giants-theres-cold-and-then-there-is-green-bay/index.html?hp

I think its hilarious. Its 38 degrees there today, and they're trying to simulate 5 degrees in Green Bay. No comparison.

[GrnBay007]

I think its hilarious. Its 38 degrees there today, and they're trying to simulate 5 degrees in Green Bay. No comparison.

No kidding....and there's NO way to simulate the wind chill factor.

[packinpatland]

I think the weather is already a factor in New York, because the media there is already doing stories about how the Giants are trying to prepare for it:

http://fifthdown.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/17/inside-the-giants-theres-cold-and-then-there-is-green-bay/index.html?hp

I think its hilarious. Its 38 degrees there today, and they're trying to simulate 5 degrees in Green Bay. No comparison.

All the more reason maybe our guys should be practicing outside. I know they're in the unheated Don Hutson Center.........but anything to give them the edge!

[Freak Out]

A. Cold weather tires you out faster...your body isn't just working to run around, it is also working to stay warm. Mike Golic mentioned that this morning about how tired he would get after cold games.

This is BS...the heat saps your strength much faster...I can run much longer at a faster pace in the winter than I can in the summer. If your on the field playing your body will regulate its temp much better than if it was hot.

[Freak Out]

Eli has a history (a short one) of playing poorly in the cold....thats why you stuff the run and force him to win the game. If the Packers play smart and don't turn it over they should be able to get a lead and force Eli to win it and the odds are against that happening. I want to see the Packers D wire the jaws of that Giant offense shut.

[Harlan Huckleby]

When I was a lad, we built a hockey rink in our back yard and played every day. This was back in the Ice Age, before global warming, and we'd get three weeks in a row where weather didn't get above 0. Playing outside in -15 degree weather was PERFECTLY comfortable. When you're moving around, you don't even feel cold.

the only people affected by the cold will be the passers and receivers because the ball will be hard.

[MJZiggy]

I just heard that the Giants plan to make a statement by wearing short sleeves. You didn't happen to skate in short sleeves, did you? I have the feeling they're gonna be cold and wet.