that was almost a touchdown to ten points advantage that football team every week does everything you would want as a home field advantage at every place you would never want to take your daughter kill [Music] Oh [Music] in the NFL a great home field advantage begins with the obvious best teams have the best home-field advantage you got a good team you got a good home field advantage if you got a great team you got a really bad team aside there are other factors to consider when making a list of the NFL's all-time home feel the benefits nothing compares to the fact you have to have a crowd that's there to scream go nuts is there an element of weather is there no noise you feel it's the place everything goes into it to create what is home-field advantage after taking all that into careful consideration younger fans think of the Vikings as this carpet team team of a high-powered passing offensive plays indoors and at the Met it just wasn't like that in the land of the Midnight Sun opponents know it can quickly turn cold that stadium was a huge home field advantage howard cosell called it the icebox that was the biggest home fielded and you're golden Minnesota it'd be 79 degrees below zero he'd run out of the tunnel and you automatically become a frozen obstacle when we played outside in Metropolitan Stadium looking snow stacked up on the sidelines that much better soda that's what we were about while at times Metropolitan Stadium seemed more conducive to hosting the Winter Olympics than pro football the cold weather was a catalyst that helped the Vikings reach four Super Bowls during their 21 seasons outside I think one of the reasons why the Vikings went to all those Super Bowls because they got home-field advantage in so many of those years and teams would just be terrified about going up to Metropolitan Stadium in January they felt like they were playing that Arctica and whenever you saw a sideline shot of the visiting team they all look like they wish they were somewhere else perhaps the most significant aspect of our number 10 home-field advantage was the way longtime Minnesota head coach but grant prepare his teeth a winner but grants career was based on the fact that we will make the cold front but grant did not allow us to have heaters on the sidelines I don't wear gloves or any of it foul weather gear and that was his philosophy being cold is something that is akin to being hot I mean you're uncomfortable but you can function up to a certain point I think I knew what that point was they made the weather advantage into a psychological advantage and it worked for years for the Viking metropolitan stadium is completely predictable the Vikings always win and the fans love them enough truth be told Minnesota didn't always win it and it wasn't always snowing in Bloomington but win or lose or despite the forecast Vikings fans turned every home game into a party there was a great mystique about playing that fans were they were the first fans that do tailgating before games they've got huge spreads this wasn't a hot dog or hamburger operation and they were always ready to invite the players to come over and sit down we had a very good relationship with my fans we used to look up in the stands and on some of the real cold winter days people up here with their shirts off anything god these people got to really love us [Music] for a whole new generation of Vikings fans they too have no idea how cold it is because following the 1981 season Minnesota abandoned the met opting instead for the climate-controlled comfort of the Metrodome the Minnesota lost the old man I thought they lost part of the character who they were moving of the dome they've stuck ever since if you look at their postseason record in the Met versus what it is in the dome I mean that's pretty much speaks for itself I would not be surprised if you asked biking fans would you go back outside if you thought would help you win championships again they'd say show me the cult coming up on top ten we'll look at a team that found it more advantageous to play its home games outdoors rather than inside before we roll out the rest of our list let's take a look at which domed teams had an advantage the second they stepped on the field the Rams were called the greatest show on turf for nothing that team that personnel in that building and on that field they were lethal what about the RCA Dome in Indianapolis they pump in fake crowd noise to make it louder they turn up the thermostat when the opposing quarterback hasn't slowed that sounds like a really rough place to but Kingdome was pretty pretty impressive it was a terrible building but it was conducive being wailing noise but the Seahawks enjoyed an even greater advantage after they filled the Kingdome scootin number nine home field advantage of all time see ya Westfield the fans will not sit down and they will not be quiet for the next three hours money quest fields establish themselves is far the toughest place to play in the NFL that place is loud I mean it's it's like thunder it's so loud at some point it sounds like you know you're talking and I don't know what you're saying it's almost like somebody push the mute button while deafening decibel were commonplace inside the kingdom surprisingly when Seattle moved to their new outdoor home in 2002 the noise swallowed how they've been able to replicate indoor sound and outdoor building I don't know the way that building is structured it keeps all the sound in all Island took some little billions and like came up some astronaut guy who went me NASA figured out how to design that stadium to make it loud and network we didn't go into it with the intention of making it allowed Stadium but things that we did for weather protection or sight lines getting fans close to the action contributed to bouncing sound back down onto the beetle know our fans are loud they're excited they're over caffeinated see our fans are certainly all that but collectively they are best known as the twelfth man on the field a distinguished and deserving honor it's a kind of a civic pride thing for us we've retired number 12 for our fans it was the first time in NFL history that a jersey with the number 12 on it was dedicated to the fan moving outdoors the 12th man tradition has become even more celebrated just before kickoff at every home game they raise a 12 man flag and that only gets the crowd for key now what happens if your team really sucks I mean you raise the club man flag at half-mast fortunately for Seattle they haven't had to answer that question since moving to our number nine home field advantage the Seahawks have won three quarters of their games at Qwest here at home the home-field advantage really has worked from a Hawks in the past one of their most memorable victories came against the Giants in 2005 when the 12th man came ready to play now that was as loud as any game I've ever been around and so we did have some difficulty obviously with some false starts in all New York was tag 411 procedure penalties a feat credited in part to Seattle's most famous fans [Applause] we're gonna present this to the 12th man was never more evident in the game yesterday with ball beam bounces directly because of crowd noise and our enthusiasm of our parents it's not a cliche that place rocks this place is actually shaking you know it's just an awesome place to play [Applause] [Music] of all time Miami's or for Miami's home-field advantage was a paramount importance for amidst the bedlam of the Orange Bowl visiting teams definitely did not feel well I thought the Orange Bowl was the toughest place for any team I was involved with every play it was hot and humid especially in the fall in our biggest home-field advantage was playing in September and October at one o'clock in the orchard for 60 long minutes these two AFC Eastern Division foes a dual and out and humid 85 degree Florida weather I think that was a distinct home advantage because of the physical you knew in the fourth quarter you better have a lot of Gatorade on the sidelines and you were going to be cramping up using every advantage at his disposal head coach Don Shula helped his team beat the heat in the searing heat could be 120 degrees on the floor the Orange Bowl the Dolphins kept their cool we felt it hit a player in South Florida we had the choice of New Jersey color so on we're always going to wear white because it did reflect the Sun better than a dark color teams didn't like to come here to play us and we made him sweat through it inside the Orange Bowl Nolan is cooler than Miami's mascot flipper who was brought in to entertain the fans or wasn't a lot of people thought that the dolphin was stealing the signals from the opposing team via sonar they can't talk it could be quite intimidating to look up and see an actual mammal flipping and swimming in the end zone even the flipper or joint is the part but I know that it certainly helped the Dolphins play with the porpoise [Applause] [Music] all kidding aside our number 8 home field advantage made our list because it still owns the NFL record for most consecutive home victories it was way back on October 3rd 1971 that the Dolphins last experienced defeat in the Orange Bowl over a period of four years the Dolphins won 27 straight games at the Orange Bowl we set that record there and it is stood the test of time all five of my and Super Bowl appearances occurred while they were tennis at the Orange Bowl well it took more than just great teams to get them there we got a very real intense crowd knowledge Bowl was built that's a football stand so the stains were very close to the field I was so noisy you couldn't hear from there myself to the left guard which is really you know two steps the fans realized they could have an effect on the outcome of a ballgame by crowd noise at the opportune time that time came on a Monday night against unbeaten Chicago in 1985 the Bears were threatening to equal Miami's perfect season of 1972 and the Orange Bowl responded with its own brand of hostility from the time the dolphin team came out of the locker room until it was over you could not hear yourself thank you except when Moreno stepped up under the fact that we play the life the atmosphere that night was it was just incredible this now back to goes the pro I look right here and it made difficult man he just was presiding something I've never seen a more drastic advantage then I saw that night coming up on top 10 a cookie-cutter stadium that was anything but warm and inviting for opponents that may have been the toughest atmosphere ever [Applause] [Music] before we continue counting down to number one let's see which cookie cutters just missed a seat on our list so I'm a favorite cookie Wow yeah of course it's the double stuffed Oreo Oreo a lot of people don't know this but the architect of all these stadiums that looked exactly alike was a man named Nabisco when RFK rocked the Redskins roll you know in there I mean it was so holy moly you didn't like planning when the Bengals were faint with hunger they could always rely on riverfront concession stands you think Jack Murphy Stadium mascot made opponents cry foul the dancing chicken in San Diego wouldn't come joke come around our sideline it'd have been a plucked chicken but opponents really couldn't wait to see our next cookie cutter crumble Pittsburgh I'll bet you that most Steeler fans who are of a younger age couldn't tell you where the Steelers played before Three Rivers Stadium they played at Pitt Stadium that's where they play they may have played but the Steelers seldom won that pit during the 1960's they amassed only 11 victories at the stadium hopefully the Steelers can leave this type of misfortune here at Pitt Stadium because in 1970 the Steelers will operate out a brand new Three Rivers Stadium a multi-million dollar showcase for big league sports in a big league town we came here it was such an uplift I mean it was a time that there were good things happening Chuck Noll was the coach indeed a few million good players that was here that we had Terry Bradshaw starting I think what made Three Rivers Stadium the home field advantage was they built this Stadium in 1970 and the Steelers got good in nineteen for 40 years Pittsburgh Steelers with NFL's least successful football but in the 70s as you can see all that chains I mean had a great team and they want that's why I was a home-field advantage during their first ten seasons the Steelers enjoyed a winning percentage of 841 and Three Rivers well known for producing the miraculous on game day the rest of the week the place was quite ordinary the future swapped in it's not an atmosphere there was a cookie cutter Stadium it had a stretcher and was round it held 54,000 people you'd go into the new stadium it looks are like a some kind of dentists offices for opponents a visit to our number seven home field advantage often proved just as painful in 31 seasons at Three Rivers the Steelers had only one losing season an accomplishment due in part to its loyal and dedicated fan base [Music] during the week pittsburgh pennsylvania makes the nation steal but on Sunday they become the Steeler Nation this is one of the loudest ballpark for roaring for noise contains noise and one of the most vocal crowd well first of all you know it's a poll the noise had nowhere to don't listen went off it was just deafening but Three Rivers also had a bounce to it the fans would jump up and down on the stands with Tom moving it and that would add to the whole atmosphere I like that you know it's like coming in here there was enthusiasm then I and the feeling that stay in that kind of bonded everybody that Steeler bond was forever galvanized in 1975 with a gimmick dreamed up by Pittsburgh broadcaster Myron cope the Steelers have the terrible going for [Applause] and everybody had a doll they were cheap bring one to the stadium and twirl and they did [Music] the site of for conference championships three rivers held more memories than the number of seats had filled on game day but in 2001 success gave way to frontlets Three Rivers Stadium was all about winning they built that the team got good four Super Bowls later that's what you identify the modern era of Steeler football it all came together in a perfect storm barren Stadium if the vets not on that top 10 list then you ought to just throw away the top 10 list I play here in Philadelphia for all these years we knew teams and like coming into the back so that is one of these abominations of large sports we draw a big circle laying down some concrete vanilla love it spread some plastic turf over top of it and crammed 80,000 people in there's only one thing everybody in the NFL could agree on every year the vet was off Veterans Stadium is number 6 on our list due in part to its reputation as a dump it was a cold cut a colorless place a toxic waste dump the team comes in a veteran stage they see the leaky pipes already you know this horrible place everybody talks about the veal oh this is the worst you're gonna get hurt it's just you're not gonna get out of here alive the other teams were really intimidated as soon as they walk in to the stadium I can't get to the bottom metal these guys looking at fulfill the worst feel ever at NFL quarterbacks walk up to the line of scrimmage they would look at the Eagles defense and then they would look over their shoulder see where the soft spot in the crease was the turf was so bad Ravens head coach Brian Billick refused to play a preseason game there in 2001 the game has been officially cancelled but to Philadelphia and lines to Bowie before he learns to speak from cheering emotionless Michael Irvin - booing Santa Claus our number seven home field house some of the NFL's rowdiest fans the national perception the Philadelphia sports fan is that they are lunatics almost pathological ii- and i think it is a richly justified reputation the fans took the particular slide in making that a terrible place to play that's why they call this city to brotherly love they have no love from the brothers the bottom line it plays in a hole and we like that blow when the Eagles were good and playing the bet and they caught you there late in the season of weather was bad and those fans got wild up that may have been the toughest atmosphere I've ever seen naturally in the end it was a horrible Stadium put it what's the best thing that ever happened for the Eagles it really was when we returned the West Coast field of nightmares is everything we want as a home field advantage and every place we would never want to take your daughter before we continue counting down the top 10 home field advantages let's leap back in recap the bowl made it okay to wear white after Labor Day that did reflect the Sun better than a dark color it looks sort of like a dis officer a true Philadelphia fan learns to be before he learns to speak arrowheads d [Applause] [Music] and the city's one of the toughest places to play in the NFL it was the best open error crowd of a tough stout Brook place from his Kansas City now that's a loud place our offense team is very high sloping stands on either side so it creates a situation like Canyon balls sound echoes through there Harrod stadium is loud during the coin toss Hughes fans just like to make noise if visitors didn't know any better they would wonder where the campus was located at our number 5 home-field advantage it's like a college atmosphere people wear their red they come to the game and they're proud that they can make a difference for their team the barbecue activities prior the game smokers come over the top of the stadium and you're competing here biggest advantage anybody could have so why is Arrowhead only number five on our list well in the 35 seasons the Chiefs have played there they posted five playoff games and lost three of them well everybody always says that the loudest outdoor stadium and football is Arrowhead and yet everybody about the Chiefs is there so have fallen for that boat while they haven't had much postseason success the Chiefs have the best winning percentage at home since 1990 and a dedicated fan base - boom these people in this town treat the Kansas City Chiefs and Stanley they live and die for the cat searches every Sunday people against city have nothing better to do they love their cheats they're gonna show up win or lose Kansas City is the Kansas City Chiefs biggest show in town this is what these people live for more than anything else our number 5 home field advantage is known for its noise I had to pick the loudest state I would pick Arrowhead Stadium 747 rolling down the runway and you're 200 feet away I mean it's the Sounders remark I'll never forget playing against the Buffalo Bills in 1991 on Monday night now this place actually shake Jim Kelly was calling the plays at the line of scrimmage that lasted I think one or two series because the guards in front of it couldn't hear what he was saying the noise was so loud the national audience got to see Kansas City and they could not believe how loud it was in the stadium at night [Music] oakland-alameda County Coliseum the oakland-alameda County Coliseum the Colosseum a monument to the newfound confidence of the East Bay community stands also as a tribute for the Raider organization we played it all we felt like we could beat anybody at any time just win baby you had that feeling that the Raiders in Oakland or unfilled [Applause] there wasn't a more complete image that any team could protect when the Raiders were home the Raiders returned at the stadium built in response to their dynamic rise the Oakland Coliseum any conversation about the Coliseum must include the colorful fans of the black hole it became almost crazy costume night how about if we just start to dress up boy we needed to prove an ax handle on my head it is the most bizarre place I've ever been so much a feeling like yet in Baltimore where they were for the team in Oakland they were against the visitors I'll never forget turned into Dave's I looked around and I said faces were painted their horns on their shoulder pads little kids were flipping us off they're playing hells bells and I said we're literally in Hell here every stadium has loud fans but the Raiders used their crowd to their advantage al Davis used to go down the field all the time he'd go into the end zone telling them you need your help tonight I need your help you get it make some noise I had anything gone out and they would do it does everything you would want as a home field advantage and every place you would never want to take your daughter - while the Coliseum was physically intimidating how Davis gained advantages with psychological warfare out Davis was just a master at making everybody think of all kinds of things going on we put it out there you went ahead and reigned in a month so why there's certain spots on the field it was very wet their receivers knew where the wet spots were but ours didn't Park Bo was a little a little weird in it it always got wet gorgeous California weather would have played in a swamp yeah we also had a great time keeper out there I was so surprised about how those games could end so quick those footballs never ever had enough air and I'm on third long for me there's a lot of little things going on behind the scenes it paid it's very comfortable but it wasn't chicanery that pushed the Colosseum to number four on our list it had more to do with Oakland's fourteen and three postseason record there coming up on top 10 our road trip makes a stop at the world's largest outdoor insane asylum stay tuned before we swing through the rest of our list let's take a look at which fields were the toughest calls to leave out play until 1955 the Polo Grounds were home to great catches by the Giants and the Giants but it was their next home that made New York field and I think a lot of us automatically disorder associated ourselves with the Yankees and their success we felt the real uplift when the Patriots called Fenway home in the 60s they might have learned a few things from their fellow tenants added Wrigley the Bears were known for tight spending and even tighter crowds George Halas who never met a nickel a didn't life would put folding chairs alongside the bench and of course Chicago fans are capable of really colorful language but no matter where the fans at Wrigley couldn't unseat the next stadium on our list three home-field advantage of all time Baltimore's Memorial Stadium the first of all Baltimore marks and be number one why good afternoon everybody welcome to Baltimore full football at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore Maryland have never had a courting spectacle quite like it and apart studying another friendly Baltimore was this wonderful football crazy town and the cult's had this storybook mythic relationship with that city I've never seen spirit it existed any study ended up there in Baltimore these people I mean they the soul was the boss we were there college football fans held a deep admiration for their thoughts and the feeling was quite mutual I'm not sure I've ever had a feeling in sport even winning the Super Bowls that we want like being introduced in Memorial Stadium I don't know if my feet touch the ground Memorial Stadium is said to have coined the term home-field advantage from 1957 to 1971 the Colts enjoyed the best hold winning percentage of any team in the NFL and the fans were a big part of that [Music] they created organized charity - they had cheers spelled out folks the fans had a great rapport had a great understanding of the game and they took tremendous pride in being as loud as possible at the right times coming down to the horseshoe down there that closed in the sound reverberate you're somebody who sat in that horseshoe you are not a passive never was the home crowd more participatory than when working John Elway visited Baltimore after spurting the coals number one selection of him in the 1983 Brown [Music] John Elway came back for his first game there they've packed the place it was deafening and that's a game John Elway will never forget I remember it was the most brutal and bitter and stuff I'd ever while the crowd could beat up on opponents the stadium itself had its own inherent advantages Memorial Stadium was to anybody outside of Baltimore's way of thinking a really crappy stadium it wasn't pretty always seemed to be a little overcast the field was glorified dirt you went in there as a visiting team what the locker room was disgusting they had four showers that had no stalls and they had the commode in the middle of the room with no partitions so if you're somebody from the other team you looked at Memorial Stadium as this is an awful place to come and that's the roots of a great home-field advantage but that home-field advantage was uprooted in 1984 when the Colts moved to Indianapolis our number three home-field advantage stood vacant for the next 12 seasons into the browns relocated hi everybody and welcome to Memorial Stadium a historic afternoon here in Baltimore as the old girl is back in town the Ravens played their final home game at Memorial Stadium in 1997 on hand were the original Colt repaid a memorable tribute to the old horseshoe by running one last play it gets a bottle I tell Mitchell everybody [Applause] Memorial Stadium is just a tremendous home-field advantage a sense not so much of Venice but just unfailing unwavering support from the front row to the back row the first fan to the 60,000 fan they all came to cheer the Colts and they did so very well affects the home field whose advantage was all about location location location that was almost a touchdown to ten points advantage that football team every week what's up smart some teams need to manufacture a home-field advantage whether it be puffy and fake crowd noise or having an ex-con plow a spot for your kicker to plant its foot teams will do whatever it takes to get an edge there are wind tunnels which prevail in some stadiums depending on whether the door is open and I recall a game at one stadium I won't say which well we were going towards the door they would open it in the Gayle would come blowing out from that end of the field and when the home team was going towards the door some workmen would sidle by and pull the door down and they did not have to win this advantage but our number-two home field needed no such gimmicks the best home-field advantage in the league was Mile High I think that mile high when the Broncos were good was the greatest home-field advantage that I saw my time rambly [Applause] [Music] [Applause] Denver Broncos that was almost a touchdown to ten points advantage that football team got been to the new well you know what they call it just it's not behind more but it's time to say you've just crossed into the mile-high zone there's the noisy presence of over 75,000 orange plant Bronco minions the air sapping altitude the pressure of one of pro football's finest teams why is mile high number two on our list it's all right there in the name the stadium sits 5,280 feet above sea level and oxygen is part come baaack it's a factor we're playing in Denver and just jogging around the field one time I could not believe how difficult it was to get there we tried everything and then we go out there day earlier and try to get acclimated but it really didn't matter until you're able to adjust and your body is able to adjust it was a distinct advantage for them right away psychologically you go like God if I'm just if I'm just doing drills and my chest is heaving I can't imagine to happen what in hell way start striving on the field [Applause] but Mike the whole altitude effect be all in the opponent's head they do a good job of them to try and make sure you think it's a factor I think the altitude is more of a mindset and in this anything else they're gonna do a toxin dog they own a toxin but once you're lightheaded once that's it for the death by the end of the games they're not actually tired you're more adjusted the high altitudes in Denver do more than just make players reach for their oxygen kickoffs travel an average of four yards further at mile-high putts go three to four yards it's a lot easier to make a 50-yard field goal [Music] the longest punt in NFL history also happened at Mile High the jet Steve O'Neill booted a 98 yarder in 1969 if kickers definitely an advantage out there I think the loudest outdoor stadium I was ever in was Denver during the Elway or the fans would actually bounce the stadium when they got going that whole Ground when they shake it well I was loud but Arrowhead was the loudest ad than the in the lake mile-high might lose out as the loudest even with all the Broncos was with the Broncos all-time winning percentage in Denver is 63% their all-time winning percentage on the road is 40% you're just playing a different sport when you're up there in the mountains coming up on top 10 the stadium with a legendary mystique you have all that great history there I mean you walk in there you feel the presence of all the people who went before really [Music] before we reveal our number one home-field advantage of all time let's catch up with the rest of our list number ten the met as a bonus losing their minds and was the toughest place for any team I was involved with their play Rivers Stadium is taken over by the Terrible Towel that's what I call the city - brotherly love they have no love from the brothers number five as a City fans warned the enemy heroine she should play well you feel like you're under attack this plays for the opponent's lines in the Coliseum out Davis was just the master and make it everybody else takes a bonus I think Lambos is the greatest venue in the National Football League nothing Lambeau Field was a great home for the baby sighs Green Bay was one the first day of Bill Destler football fans a rent-a-cop the field the Packers have one sixty one percent of their games in lamp oil and have the NFL's second longest home winning streak Lambeau Field holds slightly less people than the entire population of Green Bay and a game time it is never empty the football is a way of life here the fans helped to create the legend there is perhaps no better relationship in an NFL than the one the Packers have with Green Bay the fans and Green Bay are the most loyal craziest bunch of people I've ever been around in my life and I love him to death Packers are special to these people and if they had 150,000 seats stained you couldn't get a ticket here there will be 25,000 people outside the stadium just listening they just won't be around in teams literally owned by the fans and they share a special celebration known as the Lambo game I pay a great run by Edgar he's got half the team jumping into the space but there is one aspect of our number one whole field that cannot be built borrowed nor bought the Lambo mystique you have all that great history there and it is something that you feel when you go in there I mean you walk in there and you feel the presence of all the people that like before really lumbar certain magic still lingers in the very name I know you hear about the mystique of Lambeau Field all the time but unless you're there on the football field and a confidence level that you have coming out of that tunnel the Jews had an air that we on the coldest New Year's Eve in the cold cold history of Green Bay the Packers met the Dallas Cowboys of the Eastern Conference for the championship for the National Football League the Packers defeated the Cowboys in the game that became known as the Ice Bowl it was conditions like this that gave the Lambeau turf the moniker frozen tundra the frozen tundra is definitely a mystique that goes along with the Packers [Music] it was definitely home-field advantage because it was so cold and it contains had no desire to playing cold weather the Packers played their best in the cold as the team won every home playoff game in their first 45 years and the steam if you're talking about postseason winning streak you're talking about games that are being played in December and January where the conditions are extreme the Packers have sold out every day since 1960 win or lose Lambeau Field is the number one home field advantage in the NFL if you play for the Packers and you're 2 and 12 you're going to a home game in mid-december everywhere else you got the car warmed up and you're ready to go it's a great town everybody needs to come to Lambeau Field once in their life there's not much about Lambeau that isn't pure and bright about NFL football that concludes our top 10 list we've toured NFL stadiums from coast to coast and while there have been a few bumps in this road trip now I think you guys must have spoken something when you're doing that there's one thing we've learned there's no place like home [Music]
