- Banned
- #16
marccooper
ALL-MADDEN TEAM
Offline
Maybe we could lobby the Saints to propose a rule to the NFL to further balance scheduling. The rule could go something like this:
When a team visits another in the regular season, on or after the Week 9 in an outdoor stadium, and experiences conditions defined as the inclement weather (which could be precisely defined based on temperature, rainfall, snow, and whether the hosting team uses longer cleats because of field conditions) that visiting team can by a letter of request guarantee that their next visit to that team will be scheduled on or before Week 8 of the regular season.
The NFL has many formulas to assure balance in competitive opportunity so this proposal should be a welcome addition.
This would not be a rule that would hurt outdoor northern teams, it would just make things even. Obviously every such team would be better off if all its southern indoor rivals visited late in the season. Obviously any other teams would rather visit early in the season unless they are accustomed to playing in such conditions and would rather their division rivals visit late in the season. Allowing affected teams to apply for an earlier visit on their next trip would balance it out and assure some rotation of seasonal timing that would make things much more even.
The reason northern teams have an unfair advantage is the luck of physics and the comfort of fans. A sweltering southern early September game could be just as hard on the Bears as a chilly northern December game is on the Saints. It could even be worse, Urlacher and Benson could leave the game with heat stroke and whine about how hard it is to play in New Orleans in September. The difference is that in cold conditions, fans can bundle up in thick jackets but players cannot. In sweltering conditions there is no way to make conditions acceptable for fans but tough on players. Fans cannot afford refrigeration suits. You cant economically air condition the fans but not the field in some open air stadium. So southern teams have to neutralize their natural advantage to keep fans comfortable, while northern teams can retain home field advantage conditions because fans can watch a game in thick layers of clothing but players cannot play in thick layers of clothing.
When a team visits another in the regular season, on or after the Week 9 in an outdoor stadium, and experiences conditions defined as the inclement weather (which could be precisely defined based on temperature, rainfall, snow, and whether the hosting team uses longer cleats because of field conditions) that visiting team can by a letter of request guarantee that their next visit to that team will be scheduled on or before Week 8 of the regular season.
The NFL has many formulas to assure balance in competitive opportunity so this proposal should be a welcome addition.
This would not be a rule that would hurt outdoor northern teams, it would just make things even. Obviously every such team would be better off if all its southern indoor rivals visited late in the season. Obviously any other teams would rather visit early in the season unless they are accustomed to playing in such conditions and would rather their division rivals visit late in the season. Allowing affected teams to apply for an earlier visit on their next trip would balance it out and assure some rotation of seasonal timing that would make things much more even.
The reason northern teams have an unfair advantage is the luck of physics and the comfort of fans. A sweltering southern early September game could be just as hard on the Bears as a chilly northern December game is on the Saints. It could even be worse, Urlacher and Benson could leave the game with heat stroke and whine about how hard it is to play in New Orleans in September. The difference is that in cold conditions, fans can bundle up in thick jackets but players cannot. In sweltering conditions there is no way to make conditions acceptable for fans but tough on players. Fans cannot afford refrigeration suits. You cant economically air condition the fans but not the field in some open air stadium. So southern teams have to neutralize their natural advantage to keep fans comfortable, while northern teams can retain home field advantage conditions because fans can watch a game in thick layers of clothing but players cannot play in thick layers of clothing.
Last edited: