So all I'm hearing this morning is how the heat was an unfair advantage for the Dolphins. That if it wasn't so hot the bills would have won. Perhaps true, but let's dig into this a little.
Yesterday was hot, sure. Yet last year vs the bills we had a temp of 87 with a heat index at 97. The year before, temp of 90 with a heat index of 102. The bills won those games and I don't recall players going down every 2 minutes due to the heat. I also don't recall bills fans wanting to call OSHA (which is pathetic, let's be honest)
So what changed? Well, the bills roster is fairly consistent (at least at key positions) over the last few years. Coaching staff is the same. So it's not as if they didn't know the heat was something to deal with.
That means, in my humble opinion, they just didn't prepare properly for this game. Perhaps some of them went out drinking this week. That certainly doesn't help. Perhaps they didn't drink enough pre game or in the first quarter. Perhaps they should have traveled down sooner like the pats did to get used to it (although research shows it takes a few weeks to get acclimated to a new climate). Regardless, that's on them. That's not the heat. That's like the Fins going to buffalo in December and not wearing cold gear or having coats and heaters on the sidelines.
So yesterday the Fins won a tough divisional game against a good team. Yep, the bills are still very good at football. However, so are the Fins. It'll be interesting to see how the season plays out, but one thing is for sure - the failure to manage heat properly was on the bills staff.
Yesterday was hot, sure. Yet last year vs the bills we had a temp of 87 with a heat index at 97. The year before, temp of 90 with a heat index of 102. The bills won those games and I don't recall players going down every 2 minutes due to the heat. I also don't recall bills fans wanting to call OSHA (which is pathetic, let's be honest)
So what changed? Well, the bills roster is fairly consistent (at least at key positions) over the last few years. Coaching staff is the same. So it's not as if they didn't know the heat was something to deal with.
That means, in my humble opinion, they just didn't prepare properly for this game. Perhaps some of them went out drinking this week. That certainly doesn't help. Perhaps they didn't drink enough pre game or in the first quarter. Perhaps they should have traveled down sooner like the pats did to get used to it (although research shows it takes a few weeks to get acclimated to a new climate). Regardless, that's on them. That's not the heat. That's like the Fins going to buffalo in December and not wearing cold gear or having coats and heaters on the sidelines.
So yesterday the Fins won a tough divisional game against a good team. Yep, the bills are still very good at football. However, so are the Fins. It'll be interesting to see how the season plays out, but one thing is for sure - the failure to manage heat properly was on the bills staff.
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