Will Super Bowl weather favor run-heavy Seahawks?
Jan 24, 2014, 5:23 PM | Updated: Jan 27, 2014, 12:02 pm
By Brent Stecker
The elements that were expected to help the Seahawks and their run-heavy offense in Super Bowl XLVIII against the Denver Broncos don’t look to be nearly as severe as previously thought.
Weather.com’s latest forecast for MetLife Stadium at night next Sunday calls for a low of 25 degrees, with just a 20 percent chance of precipitation and fairly calm winds of eight miles per hour to the northwest. During the day the high is predicted to be 35 degrees with rain and/or snow showers, but kickoff isn’t set until 6:25 p.m. Eastern time, over an hour after the scheduled 5:15 p.m. sunset.
The Seahawks would likely benefit from more dramatic weather, so the current forecast is a boost for the Peyton Manning-led Broncos offense, which led the NFL with 340.3 passing yards per game during the regular season.
In the ground game, where the weather doesn’t have as big an effect, the Broncos ranked 15th in the NFL with 117.1 rushing yards per game, while Seattle was fourth at 136.8 yards per game.
In the video above, 710 ESPN Seattle’s “Bob and Groz” discuss what the forecast means for the Seahawks and Broncos.