The Week 1 game between the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars featured temperatures so intense that one player's cleats actually melted during the first half.
Videos by FanBuzz
According to Titans safety Amani Hooker, he had to change his footwear after playing in temperatures that reached 97 degrees. WSMV 4 notes that the Nashville record is 99 degrees.
"It was hot, it was really hot. My cleats actually had melted. The midsoles melted completely off," Hooker told beat reporter Jim Wyatt. "I had to change cleats right before halftime."
Middle Tennessee has been under a heat advisory in recent weeks. The Week 1 game at Nissan Stadium took place under these conditions as the Titans lost to the Jets.
The issues then continued in Week 2 as the Titans hosted the Eagles. These two teams faced off after the National Weather Service issued a heat advisory. The heat index reached 108 degrees while the game turf reached 157 degrees.
At one point, the cameras showed the Titans players getting their cleats sprayed with water. This appeared to be a strategy to help deal with the scorching temperatures.
When in Nashville… 😂 pic.twitter.com/NWepuwjpkP
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 20, 2026
Eagles center Cam Jurgens compared the field to hot lava. Per The Athletic writer Brooks Kubena, he said that he melted two pairs of cleats.
"Halftime was like a NASCAR pit crew helping me get ready for the second half," Jurgens said. "It's different when the sun hits it. It just radiates that heat."
The Eagles had actually traveled to Nashville a day early to acclimate to the heat. This potentially helped as the team pulled out a 24-20 win to move to 2-0 on the season.
"Somebody brought it up yesterday that (Titans defender) Jeffery Simmons' cleats melted last week, and I was like, 'Yeah, bulls—,'" Eagles tackle Jordan Mailata said, per The Athletic.
"And then we came out here, I was like, 'I can see why they melted.' It's like a very deceiving, very deceiving heat out there."
The effects of the heat became clear to more people than just the players. Head coach Nick Sirianni even had an IV attached to his arm after the game, which made him late to the post-win press conference.
