ExtremeRavens Posted Wednesday at 10:39 PM Posted Wednesday at 10:39 PM Buffalo is known as one of the NFL’s great winter outposts, and forecasts for Sunday evening say it will live up to its reputation when the Bills host the Ravens in an AFC divisional round playoff game. The National Weather Service projects a high of 20 degrees Sunday with a low of 8 degrees Sunday night and a 30% chance of snow showers. If the kickoff temperature is around 17 degrees as Buffalo forecasters have predicted, it would not be the coldest game in Ravens history, but it would be in the conversation. “Hopefully, we have some heaters on the sideline,” quarterback Lamar Jackson said Wednesday. “We’re trying to win, so it really don’t matter. I can’t go into a game and be like, ‘It’s too cold; I can’t make things happen.’ Coach and them would probably send me home. So I’ve got to lock in in the cold.” Jackson said he won’t wear gloves, no matter what the thermostat reads: “I tried it at practice; I was horrible.” The Ravens did not practice outside Wednesday because the fields at their training complex in Owings Mills were frozen solid, but they did keep the doors to their indoor field open. “We’ve got it as cold as we can in here,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “It’ll be colder in here tomorrow when they get the water all shut off so the pipes don’t freeze. I’d love to be outside, but we just can’t. We’ve had a lot of work in the cold, a lot of work in the wind. The elements are part of it. The other thing is going to be the footing on their field. It’s a turf field, and it’ll be hard and kind of frozen. So we’ll try and think about all that. But really what we’re thinking about is just executing our plays at the highest level we possibly can.” The Ravens’ most famous performance in frigid conditions came in their “Mile High Miracle” victory over the Denver Broncos on Jan. 12, 2013. The kickoff temperature that afternoon was 13 degrees, with a wind chill of 2 degrees. The conditions did not stop Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco from throwing for 331 yards and three touchdown passes, including his 70-yard heave to Jacoby Jones that sent the game to overtime. The coldest home game in team history was Christmas Eve 2022 when Tyler Huntley filled in for an injured Jackson as the Ravens beat the Atlanta Falcons to clinch a playoff spot. Kickoff temperature was 17 degrees with a wind chill of 2. Cornerback Marlon Humphrey warmed up without a shirt for that victory. He joked that he might do the same in Buffalo if his mother isn’t too stern with him. “I’ve always wanted to play in like three feet of snow, to where all they can do is run the ball,” Humphrey said. “It will not be that snowy. I know [the Bills are] are very used to the cold, but it gets cold enough in Baltimore. I don’t think it will be much different.” The kickoff temperature for last weekend’s home playoff victory over the Steelers was 32 degrees with a wind chill of 23. The Ravens, led by Derrick Henry, ran 50 times for 299 yards, a possible blueprint for how they’ll want to play in arctic Buffalo. “I feel like that’s just playoff football,” Jackson said. “Playing up north, you’ve got to be able to run the football. Especially in the cold, the wind. The cold really don’t play that part; it’s the wind, really. Sometimes, you’ve got to run that ball. It’ll play a huge part.” Have a news tip? Contact Childs Walker at daviwalker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6893 and x.com/ChildsWalker. View the full article Quote
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