The Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins are preparing for a freezing game at Arrowhead Stadium, but the earlier NFL playoff game between the Cleveland Browns and Houston Texans was so good that Patrick Mahomes was too distracted to go inside.
Prior to Saturday night's game, Mahomes was spotted outside at Arrowhead bundled up, but watching the wild card matchup between Joe Flacco and C.J. Stroud. NFL Network's Jesse Palmer caught Mahomes unable to look away from the AFC shootout.
Patrick Mahomes alone on the field watching the #texans and #browns game. pic.twitter.com/DqUyr50cAl
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) January 13, 2024
It's easy to understand why Mahomes was so locked into the game. The Browns and Texans were involved in an absolute shootout heading into halftime, with a 24-14 lead by Houston after two quarters. Rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud wasn't phased at all in his first postseason appearance, throwing for 236 yards and three touchdowns in the first two quarters.
Mahomes is hoping to have a similar kind of performance on Saturday night against the Dolphins, but the weather could play a major factor on the game. The weather is set to have windchills below zero degrees, with a high temperature of only eight degrees. Based off of the windchill, the game could end up being one of the coldest in NFL history.
The Chiefs-Dolphins game isn't the only one being impacted by the temperature. With heavy snowfall and gusty winds expected in Buffalo, the NFL has decided to postpone the game between the Steelers and Bills to Monday, instead of at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
Winter weather is part of what makes NFL playoff games so iconic in certain venues, and for Mahomes, he's hoping for an energetic Chiefs crowd despite the weather in order to give his team a much-needed home-field advantage against one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL.
