Maybe it’s a bad idea.
Or maybe there’s a reason retirees move to Florida.
Hall of Fame coach Don Shula’s among the lgion who thought playing a Super Bowl in greater New York was a bad idea.
“Why?” Shula said, via Ian O’Connor of ESPNNewYork.com. “That was pretty much my reaction. I certainly believe that when you get to a game of that magnitude, you want to play it in conditions where weather won’t be or might not be something that affects the outcome. So that’s why I think Miami, New Orleans, San Diego, all those warm-weather cities are the best cities for a game of that magnitude.
“Plus, the fans. You’ve got to give the fans an opportunity to come in ahead of time, enjoy what the town has to offer, enjoy the game and then stay for a couple of days afterwards, and enjoy everything. So if it’s a brutal weather condition in New York, you’re not going to do that.”
But Shula also thinks the conditions have a chance to impact the game itself, as the Seahawks and Broncos have to adjust to things other than Xs and Os.
“Certainly it will take away from their ability to play the game to the best of their talent,” he said, “and you don’t want the weather to influence a game that much. Perhaps it won’t, but the odds are that it could be a factor in the outcome if it’s brutal weather conditions.”
Of course, it could be flashbacks, as Shula lost the coldest Super Bowl on record, the 1972 game in New Orleans which was 39 degrees at kickoff.
That record’s expected to be broken Sunday, by which time we hope you will have also gotten off Shula’s lawn.
