FOX Weather Kickoff: Picking Week 1 FOX NFL games based on weather forecasts
SportsWeather has its own metrics system that compiles historical game-time weather data.
The NFL season is officially underway, so that means you’ll start to see people from NFL analysts to your friends predicting NFL games leading up to Sunday.
When it comes to time to pick games, we never know how much of a factor weather can or will play. Usually teams are picked because we believe they have better players, but what about picking a team solely based on how they have historically performed in certain weather conditions?
Well, that’s what we’re going to do, thanks to SportsWeather.
SportsWeather has its own metrics system that compiles historical game-time weather data and meshes it against both NFL teams and player historical performance.
They have stats on all players in wind, rain, sleet, snow, heat and more. Factor in the data for every player on both sides plus also each team’s historical performance, and if key thresholds are met based on the weather as predicted for game time, a pick is issued.
Important to note, SportsWeather doesn’t compile data for games that are played in domes.
For Week 1, we’re going to take a look at two games that will be played on FOX. All data is from the last 14 seasons.
GAME 1: Minnesota Vikings at Cincinnati Bengals - 1 p.m. Eastern, Fox
It’s forecast to feel like 84 degrees at the time of kickoff in Cincinnati. Historically, at that temperature, Minnesota holds a record of 2-3-1 and Cincinnati is 4-13.
The wind is forecast to be about 10 mph, where Minnesota is 9-19-1 and Cincinnati is 32-25-1 in those conditions.
There’s also a 0% chance of precipitation on Sunday. Minnesota is 42-56-2 and Cincinnati is 77-93-4 in games where there was a 0% chance of precipitation.
PICK: SportsWeather.com gives the edge to the Bengals.
GAME 2: Denver Broncos at New York Giants - 4:25 p.m. Eastern, Fox
It’s forecast to feel like 85 degrees in East Rutherford, New Jersey, at the time of kickoff Sunday afternoon. The Broncos are 10-8 and the Giants are 6-5 in games played at that temperature.
The wind is forecast to be 8 mph at game time. Denver is 72-74 and the Giants are 55-75 in that wind condition.
There’s a 0% chance of precipitation for this game as well. Denver is 101-83, while the Giants are 75-86 in games where there was no chance of precipitation.
PICK: SportsWeather.com has the Broncos coming out on top.
Enjoy all the Week 1 NFL games this Sunday, and if you’re a betting person, hopefully these picks will help you win some money.