Eagles vs. Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII: Who has the weather advantage in the Arizona heat
With Super Bowl LVII being played in a dome at State Farm Stadium, we can expect ideal weather conditions, which could make for a high-scoring affair. Throwing conditions will be perfect, which on paper would favor Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
How will the weather impact the Super Bowl?
Outlkicks's Senior NFL Writer Armando Salguero joins FOX Weather to give insight on how an open or closed dome would impact Super Bowl LVII.
GLENDALE, Ariz. - As fans flock to Glendale, Arizona, for Super Bowl LVII as the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs prepare for the big game, there's no question the weather will be stellar.
NFL fans and the players can expect cool weather with forecast highs in the low-70s with partly cloudy skies.
Home to the Arizona Cardinals, State Farm Stadium is where the Chiefs and Eagles will go head-to-head during Super Bowl LVII on Sunday.
Drone video shows State Farm Stadium in Glendale, AZ ahead of Super Bowl LVII
Drone video shows State Farm Stadium in Glendale, AZ ahead of Super Bowl LVII on Sunday, February 12.
State Farm Stadium is a dome stadium with a retractable roof, so of course, the big question is whether the roof will be opened or closed during the game.
"Retractable roofs are incredibly impressive, and State Farm Stadium notes that their roof system is designed to go from open to closed in approximately 12 minutes. Primarily, roofs are closed due to weather such as extreme cold or heat, rain, lightning, and in some cases extreme wind gusts," said Dan Slagen, CMO of Tomorrow.io. Powered by weather intelligence, Tomorrow.io is the world's leading climate adaptation platform and weather api.
(FOX Weather)
"If the roof were to be closed, there would be a potential impact on the media programming if the game needed to be delayed during the roof closure, in addition to significant increases in energy usage, think 6 to 7 figures, for both closing the actual roof and then replicating ideal weather conditions indoors with the roof closes," he added.
A communications coordinator for the NFL did tell FOX Weather the plan is to have the dome open.
Average Super Bowl weather in the Phoenix area
The Phoenix area has hosted several Super Bowls in years past.
Before 2023, Glendale hosted two Super Bowls, one in 2015 and the other in 2008.
In 2015, the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks saw a kickoff temperature of 66 degrees.
(FOX Weather)
In 2008, the Patriots and the New York Giants faced off when the temperature was slightly cooler, just 61 degrees.
Before State Farm Stadium was built, Super Bowl XXX was held at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe in 1996. The temperature when the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers was 68 degrees – ideal conditions for athletes. Overall, the average temperature is 65 degrees for Super Bowl games held in Arizona.
How do the Eagles and Chiefs fare in these weather conditions
With the game being played in a dome, we can expect ideal weather conditions, which could make for a high-scoring affair.
Throwing conditions will be perfect, which on paper would favor Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
"They both are cold weather, open-air teams. They are able to play in that kind of weather. They’re not going to see that kind of weather here. But I would say to you, because this is despite the fact that it’s a retractable roof stadium, it’s an outdoor field. They keep the grass field outdoors," said Armando Salguero, senior NFL writer for Outkick. "They grow it and maintain it outdoors. That’s going to help the Kansas City Chiefs, because the guy that you’re seeing on your screen, Patrick Mahomes, is dealing with an ankle injury and that soft turf is going to help that angle injury."
(Photo by Kevin Sabitus / Getty Images)
According to Slagen, during the regular season, Mahomes threw for 5,250 yards vs. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts throwing for 3,701, which puts Mahomes at roughly 40 percent more throwing yards.
Similar trends have followed suit during the playoffs, with Mahomes throwing for 521 yards and Hurts throwing for 275 yards, which has Mahomes at roughly 90 percent more throwing yards.
Slagen also noted both teams are 4-1 this year playing indoors. Each team played at State Farm Stadium during the season and won, but the Eagles only won 20-17 in their game, while the Chiefs won 44-21.
As for the team the weather benefits the most, Salguero said due to both sides usually being the best from each conference, Mother Nature usually does not end up being a significant factor.
Thanks to SportsWeather, which has its own metrics system that compiles historical game-time weather data and meshes it against both NFL teams and player historical performance, we can get a glimpse at how both teams have played over the years in these conditions.
At game time, it is expected to be a feels-like temperature of 65 degrees. Over the last 15 seasons, when that happens the Chiefs are 64-44 in those games, while the Eagles are 56-41-1.
Over the last four seasons, including this season, the Chiefs have boosted a pretty good record of 23-9, while the Eagles are 17-10-1.
While the temperature is the only weather factor that may have any impact on the game, based on recent history, the Eagles may have just a slight edge.
The Super Bowl will kick off at 6:30 p.m. ET and will be aired live on FOX and the FOX Sports App.