Miami home field sun advantage and why this is wrong on so many levels

[oldschoolfootball1963]

The NFL or players association needs to step in and do something about this. We could have had several players die or be so heat effected that it could effect those players for several games. This is a safety issue. When the dolphins play in buffalo they have the same heaters and cold weather gear and it’s on equal footing. In Miami one team gets to be in the shade the entire game while the other side bakes in the sun. I’ve never been to Hard Rock stadium. But it appears there is some sort of screen or something that keeps their side shady. This is a very unfair advantage that effects the players heath. It would be like the dolphins having to play in leather helmets Vs the Bill's with todays helmet technology. I’m not pissed that we lost. I’m mad about how the sun effected the Bills players more because one team gets the shade while the other team bakes. This needs to stop to protect player safety. 
 

I just read the entire thread. I don’t care who won the game. The winner is not important. If you took your 80 year old grandma into that stadium what side of the stadium 🏟 would you sit her on for 4 hours. We have many 300 pound men expending lots of energy. This is not right. It has nothing to do with who wins or losses. If the Bills had won I would be saying the same thing. That side of the field was unsafe for player safety. Korey Stringer died of heat stroke for the Minn Vikings. 
This was unsafe period and this effects players in different ways. We may have a few players that might not play in Baltimore because of the effects of this game. I was very worried someone might die in this game. Credit Miami for hanging in there. But look at their defense 90 plays and still doing well. Now look at the Bills offense. They look like they might die out there. If you don’t think that this is a problem then you are the problem. 

Edited September 26, 2022 by oldschoolfootball1963

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

When they visit in December, make sure there's a visitor heating bench malfunction

 

[Freddie's Dead]

The Fish make Belicheat look like Honest Abe.  Building the stadium that way was no accident.  Next-level cheating.

[Stretch]

I’m sorry, but I don't see this as cheating.  It’s smartly building an advantage.

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

45 minutes ago, Joe in Winslow said:

When they visit in December, make sure there's a visitor heating bench malfunction

 

turn off the HOT water 

 

[PetermansRedemption]

The nfl just needs to postpone games when the heat index is over 90 in Miami. Why have the players risk injury completely unnecessarily? When it can be so easily avoided. 

[CircleTheWagons99]

Player Safety my &ss. 

[Royale with Cheese]

16 minutes ago, Stretch said:

I’m sorry, but I don't see this as cheating.  It’s smartly building an advantage.

That’s the definition of cheating.  Unfairly building an advantage…

[Mango]

16 minutes ago, Stretch said:

I’m sorry, but I don't see this as cheating.  It’s smartly building an advantage.

I generally agree and at large it doesn’t bother me. But a 30 degree temperature advantage where away team is at 112 degrees in the sun and the rules say no cooling fans/benches is wild. 
 

Most games aren’t as dangerous as it was yesterday. There has to be a league rule in the hot or cold so that when things are dangerous teams can at least have safety measures like fans. 

[Son of a K-Gun]

5 minutes ago, Mango said:

I generally agree and at large it doesn’t bother me. But a 30 degree temperature advantage where away team is at 112 degrees in the sun and the rules say no cooling fans/benches is wild. 
 

Most games aren’t as dangerous as it was yesterday. There has to be a league rule in the hot or cold so that when things are dangerous teams can at least have safety measures like fans. 

 

Is this correct?  I'm sure I saw cooling fans on the Bills' sideline and the broadcast team specifically mentioned that the Bills flew in their own cooling benches for the game...

[ProcessYaDigg]

It should be like how we handle heat safety in the military.  If temperatures reach a certain heat index, then we postpone training or exercises outdoors until optimal temperatures are met.  Or typically in places where temps are 100 plus everyday, we spend a few days before training starts to climatize to the area.  Heat stroke and heat injuries are no joke.  They should've treated this game like a lightening delay and just waited til later in the day to play 

[GolfandBills]

16 minutes ago, PetermansRedemption said:

The nfl just needs to postpone games when the heat index is over 90 in Miami. Why have the players risk injury completely unnecessarily? When it can be so easily avoided. 

Pretty much the entire month of September and into October is like that there 

[Captain Caveman]

I believe teams are responsible for bringing their own heating and cooling gear to away games.  I wonder if we could get away with some giant tents that obstruct the fan views (although in Miami typically on our sideline I guess it's mostly Bills fans) 

 

But I did see Josh under a tent at times, I know we have fans, I believe we bring all that stuff ourselves.  It sucked to see the heat impact the game yesterday, but I don't think things are gonna change (maybe in another 10-20 years if climate change makes it truly dangerous / unbearable,  those stadiums will just be all indoors.)

[Low Positive]

7 minutes ago, Son of a K-Gun said:

 

Is this correct?  I'm sure I saw cooling fans on the Bills' sideline and the broadcast team specifically mentioned that the Bills flew in their own cooling benches for the game...

I think there were fans, but I read that because the Dolphins don’t use tents that the road team cannot use them because it would give them an unfair advantage. I found a reddit thread with fans from a lot of teams talking about how their team played their worst game of the year in Miami because of the heat. Bill Belichick has talked about how the heat in Miami is the biggest home field advantage in the league. It’s due to the stadium design and it’s BS.

Edited September 26, 2022 by FrenchConnection

[JerseyBills]

The only solution would be to have the teams switch at halftime but it was clearly a huge advantage and a huge reason they won. 

I'm pretty good shape and if I'd try running in 95 degree weather, I can't do it! The shade makes a massive difference in that weather 

[298Woody]

1 hour ago, oldschoolfootball1963 said:

The NFL or players association needs to step in and do something about this. We could have had several players die or be so heat effected that it could effect those players for several games. This is a safety issue. When the dolphins play in buffalo they have the same heaters and cold weather gear and it’s on equal footing. In Miami one team gets to be in the shade the entire game while the other side bakes in the sun. I’ve never been to Hard Rock stadium. But it appears there is some sort of screen or something that keeps their side shady. This is a very unfair advantage that effects the players heath. It would be like the dolphins having to play in leather helmets Vs the Bill's with todays helmet technology. I’m not pissed that we lost. I’m mad about how the sun effected the Bills players more because one team gets the shade while the other team bakes. This needs to stop to protect player safety. 

I live here is south Florida and have been saying since the new stadium bakes the opponent by design of the owner of the Dolphins. The position and roof design give complete shade on the home team side and cook the visitors. The only solution I see is to ban 1 pm games from this stadium in September and October or extens the roof to shade the entire stadium. This is the tropics.

[Dopey]

This happens all the time down here for college games. It’s called home field advantage. Suck it up and quit crying, TBD. 

[SCBills]

It is what it is, and it’s not going to change, but people literally die from heat stroke.  
 

Southern high schools and colleges have protocols in place to deal with the heat.  To have a stadium designed to amplify the heat on the opponent is pretty wild.
 

Apparently it’s going to take an Offensive Lineman passing out on the field and being taken to the hospital in an ambulance to have the NFL being called by fans/media to step in.  God forbid someone dies on the field. 

[Dopey]

Pickle juice. 

[May Day 10]

I don't want to make excuses.  It's one game and the bills blew a lot of chances...

 

Yesterday was a serious health risk.  People can die (and have died) from exerting themselves in conditions like that.  

[SCBills]

27 minutes ago, Dopey said:

This happens all the time down here for college games. It’s called home field advantage. Suck it up and quit crying, TBD. 

I somewhat agree, but a lot of Miami, UF, FSU home games have late afternoon/night start times.  Also, college rosters are much larger than the NFL 48 man active list for Gameday. 
 

Nevermind regional scheduling.  When’s the last time you saw an Ohio State play a Florida school at noon in Florida.  Most of those games are played in places that are inside like Atlanta/Dallas, ie Oregon vs UGA. 

I went to the Utah/UF game in the swamp.   It was a night game, and Utah players were still struggling even on a rainy day with lower than average temps. 

 

 

Edited September 26, 2022 by SCBills

[Dopey]

Just now, SCBills said:

I somewhat agree, but a lot of Miami, UF, FSU home games have late afternoon/night start times.  Also, college rosters are much larger than the NFL 48 man active list for Gameday. 

Disagree . I live in Tallahassee and the Noles have been pretty bad the past few years. Because of how bad they’ve been, they were given quite a few noon games, instead of the 3-330 prime spots. No shade for either side in a noon game. 330 games provided shade for the home team right around half time. Been to quite a few games on either side. You will definitely feel the heat, but that’s home field advantage. Miami sucks and has it’s share of noon games too. 

[Dirtyd415]

22 minutes ago, GolfandBills said:

Pretty much the entire month of September and into October is like that there 

No 1pm home games for the first 6 weeks for Miami.  Away, prime time, or 4pm.  

[BillMafia716ix]

The Heat definitely played a factor in the game but I also think the 63 pass attempts didn’t help either. Diggs was cramping and Olineman were dropping like flies and were so gassed they couldn’t pass protect late in the game. Offense was on the field the majority of the 2nd half 

[John Gianelli]

25 minutes ago, GolfandBills said:

Pretty much the entire month of September and into October is like that there 

When will the schedule makers start giving the Bills more home games in September and October?

[Son of a K-Gun]

16 minutes ago, Dopey said:

Pickle juice. 

 

Knox mentioned he was chugging the pickle juice.

[Dablitzkrieg]

Seriously,  stop complaining like babies.  We lost and played in the same conditions as the Fish

[SCBills]

6 minutes ago, Dopey said:

Disagree . I live in Tallahassee and the Noles have been pretty bad the past few years. Because of how bad they’ve been, they were given quite a few noon games, instead of the 3-330 prime spots. No shade for either side in a noon game. 330 games provided shade for the home team right around half time. Been to quite a few games on either side. You will definitely feel the heat, but that’s home field advantage. Miami sucks and has it’s share of noon games too. 

They do, but they also play plenty of 330/7/8 games.  
 

Also, as I said above, college active rosters are almost twice the size.  
 

Anecdotally, I went to a noon late October game between Syracuse and Clemson.  Noon start.  Game time temp 95 degrees.  They literally stopped the game multiple times for water breaks. 

[Lost]

5 minutes ago, BillMafia716ix said:

The Heat definitely played a factor in the game but I also think the 63 pass attempts didn’t help either. Diggs was cramping and Olineman were dropping like flies and were so gassed they couldn’t pass protect late in the game. Offense was on the field the majority of the 2nd half 

 

Had the Bills not passed 63 times, there likely woulda been a lot more 3 and outs and a much wider margin of victory for the Fins.     

[Dr. Who]

Just now, Dablitzkrieg said:

Seriously,  stop complaining like babies.  We lost and played in the same conditions as the Fish

Except that the Fish were under a shaded area for the entire game, so not exactly the same . . . 

[SCBills]

3 minutes ago, Dablitzkrieg said:

Seriously,  stop complaining like babies.  We lost and played in the same conditions as the Fish

Some of it is whining, but also… we didn’t.  Sun bearing down on you wears over time … it’s why their side is shaded and the opponent isn’t.  
 

End of the day, whether by design or Miami’s bend/don’t break, our TOP domination ended up being our demise.
 

By the end of drives our guys were gassed.   In the 4th quarter, bodies started giving out.  
 

Credit to Miami for blitzing tf out of our OL that can’t really rotate - they just have to stay out in the heat and take it.  And credit to Miami for doing that AND not allowing any big plays.  End result… OL gassed and WR’s running empty routes over and over to exhaustion.  
 

 

Edited September 26, 2022 by SCBills

[Donuts and Doritos]

Well, let's just plow all the snow into their sideline for December 18th. 😉

[NoSaint]

3 minutes ago, Dablitzkrieg said:

Seriously,  stop complaining like babies.  We lost and played in the same conditions as the Fish

but the conditions aren’t the same. That’s the point.

 

I’m not clutching pearls and demanding a rematch but this isn’t a great setup for the league in general 

[Billzgobowlin]

1 hour ago, Stretch said:

I’m sorry, but I don't see this as cheating.  It’s smartly building an advantage.

You are giving them too much credit.  The overhang was an after thought and they couldn't have known which way to face the stadium at the time.  

[Royale with Cheese]

 

[thenorthremembers]

I love my team and wanted to see them win yesterday but on this topic alone Ill say this...The Bills are a billion dollar organization, if they couldnt come up with a plan to prevent a known issue than its on them not the Dolphins.  

[ToGoGo]

It's the reason we lost yesterday. And yes, it could be fatal. 

 

Can't even comprehend posters disagreeing. It's not like both teams were suffering out there. Only one. 

[Royale with Cheese]

18 minutes ago, Dablitzkrieg said:

Seriously,  stop complaining like babies.  We lost and played in the same conditions as the Fish

 

We did not.

[smuvtalker]

1 hour ago, oldschoolfootball1963 said:

The NFL or players association needs to step in and do something about this. We could have had several players die or be so heat effected that it could effect those players for several games. This is a safety issue. When the dolphins play in buffalo they have the same heaters and cold weather gear and it’s on equal footing. In Miami one team gets to be in the shade the entire game while the other side bakes in the sun. I’ve never been to Hard Rock stadium. But it appears there is some sort of screen or something that keeps their side shady. This is a very unfair advantage that effects the players heath. It would be like the dolphins having to play in leather helmets Vs the Bill's with todays helmet technology. I’m not pissed that we lost. I’m mad about how the sun effected the Bills players more because one team gets the shade while the other team bakes. This needs to stop to protect player safety. 

I agree with you 100%.  Now that you and several other posters have pointed this out, it makes total sense.  I was just commenting in another thread how it seemed so weird that the Bills were struggling so bad with the heat, and cramping.  I remember watching the game at one point and the camera panned to the Bills sideline, and I said to myself "damn they look hot baking in that heat".

 

I don't know if I call it smart thinking or an unfair advantage or what, but it's DEFINITELY a considerable home field advantage for at least the first two months of the season....

[Southern_Bills]

1 hour ago, Stretch said:

I’m sorry, but I don't see this as cheating.  It’s smartly building an advantage.

 

I agree,  but you can't preach player safety and turn around and let this go on.

 

Player safety was disregarded yesterday.