AFC and NFC Championship weather: Snow and rain could affect Packers vs. Buccaneers, Chiefs vs. Bills

It’s not just the time of year when playoff football gets intense. It’s also when the weather reminds us that it’s winter – unless you’re in Florida, of course. And this weekend’s two conference championship games could be affected as such. What are you planning? Which game could be the most affected? Is Lambeau really going to be as cold as everyone else is kidding?

We have a preview of Sunday’s weather here for you, with forecast details provided by The Weather Channel:

NFC Championship

Game: Packers vs. Buccaneers | Sunday, 3:05 p.m. ET
Location: Lambeau Field (Green Bay, Wisconsin)
Forecast weather: Cloudy with flurries
Projected temperatures: 29 degrees (up), 22 degrees (down)
Possibility of snow: 50%
The winds: SSE 5 to 10 mph

What would playoff football be without a Packers home game in January? It’s a typical Lambeau for you (cold and probably snowy), although soft, relatively speaking. The forecast only projects a buildup of less than an inch throughout the day, so it’s not as if Green Bay grass is flooded. But the radar asks for a 40 to 50 percent chance in the evening. This could certainly put pressure on the passing game on either side, but again, it’s not necessarily fair to suggest that Aaron Rodgers has the advantage due to his history at Green Bay. Tom Brady, remember, spent the first 20 seasons of his career playing in cold January games at Foxborough.

AFC Championship

Game: Chiefs Against Bills | Sunday, 6:40 p.m. ET
Location: Arrowhead Stadium (Kansas City, Missouri)
Forecast weather: Cloudy with showers
Projected temperatures: 45 degrees (up), 34 degrees (down)
Risk of rain: 40%
The winds: NNE 5-10 mph

The real question for Chiefs fans, of course, is whether Patrick Mahomes will even be the one to kick the game off in this game. Either way, precipitation could play a role. Wind shouldn’t be too much of a problem, but the rain is very present, and if the temperatures drop a little lower than expected, it is not out of the question that the rain will start to freeze. This is something to watch out for, given that Bills and Chiefs like to air it regularly. If it rains, Buffalo could end up asking Josh Allen to rely more on his towering running abilities at certain points in Sunday’s affair.