This weekend a blast of winter will envelop the Central and Eastern parts of the country making for some very cold football games.  Due to this I have expanded the coverage to include notable college games this weekend. With the NFL slate there are not any games that will be affected by the usual suspects of rain, wind or snow – however I am including a few games where the cold may have an impact only because the visiting team will be somewhat of a fish out of water.  Lets dive in:

Saints @ Bengals (noon Sunday) – Temperatures in Cincinnati will be in the mid to low 40s for this game. I am only mentioning it due to the fact that as a southern dome team the Saints are not accustomed to playing in these conditions.  However, the Saints seem to be such a well-oiled machine with a formidable ground game that the impact of temperatures will likely be negligible.

Falcons @ Browns (noon Sunday) - The temperature will be hovering in the upper 30s with the windchill right at 30 degrees for this game in Cleveland.  Similar to the game I mentioned above the Falcons, like the Saints, are not accustomed to these conditions. However the fact that they are playing the Browns may help offset some of the detriment of the cold temperatures.

Dolphins @ Packers (3:25 PM Sunday) – This is the ultimate fish out of water game.  The tundra of Lambeau will be living up to its name with game time temperatures in the mid to low 30s with a small chance of snow.  Due to these conditions and the Dolphin’s talent level I believe the cold will have a real impact here.  To Aaron Rodgers these conditions are likely downright refreshing, but for the Dolphins it will likely be quite a shock to the system. Look for the Dolphins to try to keep it on the ground as much as possible, especially with Osweiler under center.

College Special

I have highlighted too many games here to give individual breakdowns but below you will find a summary of the notable conditions so that you can make or adjust any wagers accordingly. Take note – wind will be an issue at many games on Saturday.

TCU @ West Virginia – Mid to low 30s. Slight chance of snow. Wind 14 MPH gusting to 25 MPH.

Ohio State @ Michigan State – Low 30s. Chance of snow early in the game. Wind 17 MPH gusting to 30 MPH.

Wisconsin @ Penn State – Mid 30s. Wind 15 MPH gusting to 40 MPH.

Baylor @ Iowa State – Temperature in the upper 20s with a windchill in the upper teens.

Virginia Tech @ Pitt – Mid 30s. Chance of snow. Wind 16 MPH gusting to 35 MPH.

Purdue @ Minnesota – Temperatures in the upper 20s with a chance of snow late.

Temple @ Houston – Low 50s with rain.

Florida State @ Notre Dame – Temperature in the mid 20s.

Texas @ Texas Tech – Mid 40s. Wind 14 to 20 MPH.

Clemson @ Boston College – Upper 30s. Wind 15 MPH gusting to 45 MPH.

If you are looking for information on any other games feel free to reach me on Twitter @stephenuzick.