Even under normal conditions, a Christmas Eve game between the Browns and Saints, both of whom would need a miracle to make the playoffs at this late juncture in the season, wouldn’t have drawn a big crowd. But with temperatures in the single digits and 24-mph winds making it feel much colder, FirstEnergy Stadium may as well have been empty, making for an eerie scene reminiscent of a scarcely-attended high school game.
The atmosphere at Browns games is usually a raucous one, but with icy roads making it difficult to drive, most decided they’d rather watch from the comfort of their own home, perhaps while decorating the tree with lights and ornaments. To reward the brave souls who made it out to Cleveland (YouTubers Logan and Jake Paul among them), battling the elements to see their hometown team play a relatively meaningless game against an equally underwhelming opponent, the Browns opened up their lower bowl to fans, saving them from the treacherous climb to their seats in the 500 level.
Vegas sportsbooks set the over/under for Saturday’s game at 32 combined points, the NFL’s lowest total since 2008. The weather was only marginally better for last week’s game against Baltimore, with Cleveland getting the remnants of a powerful snowstorm that clobbered Pittsburgh and Buffalo hours earlier.
No-shows are always a risk when scheduling late-season games in Cleveland, though players seemed to embrace the miserable conditions including tight end David Njoku, who in defiance of Mother Nature, took the field shirtless for pregame warmups.
Saturday’s low turnout is a good argument for having teams in cold-weather cities play indoors, though it would also eliminate their homefield advantage in some cases, like we saw last weekend when the Dolphins, accustomed to gorgeous weather in South Florida, experienced the culture shock of a Buffalo blizzard.
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