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The Philadelphia Eagles haven’t had the best weather for their first two games of the 2018 NFL season.
Week 1’s game was very hot and humid and the start time got delayed due to heavy thunderstorms passing through the Philly area. Then Week 2’s game featured temperatures over 100 degrees down in Tampa Bay.
The good news is that today’s game won’t be hot. It’s going to feel like 62 degrees around the Eagles’ 1:00 PM kickoff, which is good football weather.
The bad news it’s going to be very wet. Weather forecasts show that it’s going to rain for most of the day on Sunday. Via Weather.com:
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It doesn’t look like there’s going to be thunderstorms so we don’t have to worry about the game getting delayed. And I imagine the Eagles have covered the playing surface at Lincoln Financial Field with a tarp to keep it dry as possible.
The Eagles last played a rainy home game when they hosted the San Francisco 49ers in late October last season. Carson Wentz, who once struggled to throw a wet ball during a pre-draft workout, only managed to complete 56.3% of his passes for 211 yards (6.6 average), two touchdowns, one interception, and a 84.2 passer rating that day. Hopefully Wentz will look sharper than that in his first game back since tearing his ACL last December.
As for you fans attending the game, note that the Linc doesn’t allow umbrellas inside. So make sure you bring some ponchos to stay dry.
UPDATE: If you’re worried about Wentz playing in the rain, here’s an interesting note from former NFL team doctor David Chao.
The natural reaction is a that there would be an increased concern for injury for Wentz, who is coming back from a torn ACL and LCL, and other players. It is actually the opposite. Poor footing decreases the chance for re-injury to Wentz’s knee. Much like a beginners purposely use looser ski bindings to help prevent ACL tear, slick turf means feet don’t catch as easily. The vast majority of ACL tears are non-contact and involve the foot sticking into the ground. In my career as an NFL team doctor, I noted significantly lower knee and foot and ankle injuries when playing in bad weather.