PRO FOOTBALL
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
Sunday, February 10, 2013 • Page C9
Nothing to fear from a snowy Super Bowl
Woody Johnson owns the New York Jets, so he’s no stranger to making big proclamations. Consider this one, just after the New York area won the bid for the first Super Bowl in an outdoor stadium in a cold weather market. “I like doing things for the first time,” Johnson said. “I hope it snows.” Not quite as bold as guaranteeing his team would be both a host and participant in the game. As dysfunctional as the Jets are, it’s hard to imagine they still will be playing next Feb. 2 when the two best teams in football square off in the 48th big game of the modern – or any other – era. But Johnson easily could get his wish when it comes to the weather, as New Yorkers were reminded this weekend. Probably not a foot of snow like the New York area got hit with in the latest storm just days after the Super Bowl in New Orleans. But cold, definitely, with snow more than just a random possibility.
It’s a scenario that will occupy organizers for many long hours. There will be volunteers ready to sweep snow from the stadium at the Meadowlands, portable heaters everywhere, and extra stocks of hot chocolate and schnapps for corporate executives to sip in the stands. Ultimately, though, it’s not something the NFL needs to be terribly worried about. The league can do no wrong, and that won’t change just because the elements will intrude on the next Super Bowl. Might even make it more interesting for the 100 million or so people who will be watching in the comfort of their own living rooms. Football is a game meant to be played in the elements, as commissioner Roger Goodell reminded us last week in New Orleans. One of the NFL’s iconic games was the so-called “Ice Bowl” of 1967, when the Green Bay Packers defeated the Dallas Cowboys on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field to win
VIEWS Tim Dahlberg a spot in the second Super Bowl. The temperature at game time was 14 degrees below zero, and the wind chill was far worse. The field was a sheet of ice, and it was so cold referees couldn’t use whistles because they became frozen to their lips. Sorry, New Jersey, but you’re not going to top that. And they still played the game. Yes, it could be cold. Yes, there could be snow. And, yes, the game would be better off in Florida or inside a dome with good electrical service. That’s especially true if the participants are teams used to domes or warm climates. But the Jets and Giants spent a lot of money to build the new stadium they share, and they wanted a Super Bowl for the New York metropolitan area.
Ultimately that’s what drives Super Bowl selection these days. Owners want to reward their fellow owners, and five of the past 10 title games have gone to cities that have ponied up for new stadiums. Giving one to the New York area was always a little dicey, which is why it took four votes by owners a few years back to give the game to the Meadowlands over bids by warm weather sites Tampa and South Florida. It came after organizers urged them to “Make Some History” and showed a video that included clips from historic cold-weather games. Trust the NFL to pull this one off. This is a league, after all, that is so untouchable that a 34-minute power outage in New Orleans not only turned a rout into a competitive game but made TV ratings go up around the country. And the time it rained at a Super Bowl? You may not remember the game, but probably do remember Prince playing “Purple Rain”
as it came down in Miami in 2007. Nothing can dent the NFL’s widespread popularity. Not a lockout, replacement referees or even brain injuries. Certainly not a little cold and snow. “The plans that have been developed for the Super Bowl, I think, are extraordinary, and they’re just beginning to be released,” Goodell said in New Orleans. “We will be prepared for the weather factors.” Actually, the NFL has some issues to worry about other than the weather at the Meadowlands. Hotel rooms surely will be in short supply even at exorbitant prices, and transportation for teams, support staff, media and volunteers will be a challenge. There are also a ton of logistical worries that go along with putting the most watched sporting event in America in the most congested area in the country, and not everyone is cooperating. The mayors of at least two towns near MetLife Stadium,
upset that their towns don’t get some benefit from the facility, threatened in a recent press release not to help with police, fire or other municipal services needed for the Super Bowl unless the NFL starts writing some checks. “With one of (the) world’s largest sporting events coming to the East Rutherford venue, there is little doubt that the mayors will be expecting a call that their services are needed,” Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli said in the statement. “The answer will be clear: Don’t ask.” The Super Bowl will not be without problems. Even the NFL can’t make everyone happy, not matter what the weather is like. But let a little cold and snow mess up the first – and quite possibly only – Super Bowl in the New York area? Fuhggedaboutit.
• Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg@ap.org or twitter.com/timdahlberg.
Everyday Heroes Award Recipients: Nominated by Northwest Herald Readers
AP file photo
Rob Ryan was hired as the New Orleans Saints’ defense coordinator Saturday after spending the past two seasons as the defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
Saints hire Ryan as defensive coordinator By BRETT MARTEL The Associated Press
METAIRIE, La. – Saints coach Sean Payton has chosen Rob Ryan as his new defensive coordinator, hoping New Orleans can overhaul a unit that was historically bad last season. Ryan, the brother of New York Jets coach Rex Ryan, spent the past two seasons as Dallas’ defensive coordinator. He was fired after last season, when his defense ranked 19th. “We have experience in preparing and playing against his defenses and they’ve always been challenging in terms of the different looks and pressures that they feature,” Payton said when Ryan’s hiring was announced Saturday, one day after he interviewed for the job. “We’ve had the chance to visit with each other and talk about our visions for our team and I’m excited about moving forward as we prepare for the 2013 season.” In 2010, Ryan was Cleveland’s defensive coordinator when the Browns beat the Saints in the Superdome 30-17, intercepting passes by Drew Brees four times. One of those interceptions was made by linebacker Scott Fujita, who had been a captain of New Orleans’ defense a season earlier and had helped Ryan prepare and execute the game plan against the Saints. Payton said he also has added Stan Kwan as an assistant special teams coach. Kwan has been an NFL assistant 23 years, the past three
as special teams assistant in Buffalo. “Stan is a veteran coach that understands all nuances of the special teams game,” Payton said. “He has a wealth of knowledge and I believe he will be a good fit.” Just days after returning from his season-long suspension in connection with the NFL’s investigation of the Saints’ cash-for-hits bounty program, Payton fired defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and said he would switch New Orleans’ defensive scheme from a 4-3 alignment (four down linemen, three linebackers) to a 3-4. The Saints yielded 7,042 yards last season, the worst singleseason total in NFL history. Ryan has run 3-4 schemes for years. He worked as a linebacker coach in such defenses in New England, where he was part of two Super Bowlwinning teams. He then spent five seasons as defensive coordinator in Oakland (20042008), followed by two seasons in Cleveland before moving to Dallas in 2011. Now the 50-year-old Ryan takes his fourth defensive coordinator job since 2004 while becoming Payton’s fourth defensive coordinator since 2006. “I have had the opportunity to get to know Sean Payton and his staff a bit better recently and I am excited about joining the team,” Ryan said in a statement provided by the Saints. “I’m ready to get to work on all facets of the game. This is a great opportunity and we’re getting started right away.”
Joe Alger Jayne Anderson Robert Brown Sue Cisko John Diedrich Jerry Eiserman Tom Erwin Irene Garza Crystal Gray Peggy Grasley Jane Hagenow Brad Jones
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