49ers Vs. Giants, NFC Championship Game Weather Report: It Could Get Ugly

by David Fucillo on Jan 17, 2012 12:00 PM PST in 2012 NFL Playoffs

This past Saturday, the weather was about as perfect as it could be for the 49ers-Saints game. There was very little wind, the sky was completely clear and we had temperatures in the imd-60s. A day later the weather dropped into the low 50s and it has been cold (for SF) since. As we head towards Sunday's 49ers-Giants NFC Championship Game, we could be looking at some drastically different weather.

Showers and 15 mph wins are nothing to sneeze at, but it is possible the weather could get worse by Sunday. Tre9er tweeted out a Bay Area weather advisory that calls for possible heavy rain and locally strong and gusty winds at times. If any part of San Francisco is going to get hit heavy with this weather system, Candlestick Park is high on the list. They warn of potentially significant weather changes, so we'll keep an eye out to see whether it gets better or worse.

If the weather is windy, rainy and generally nasty, one has to imagine there is a sizable impact on the Giants passing game. Eli has proven to be a very solid quarterback so it will be interesting to see how he performs in particularly adverse conditions. He's played in some nasty conditions during his time in the NFL, but this could get pretty bad. With a particular slick environment, it will be interesting to see if we have a continuation of the divisional round fumble issues that cropped up in the NFC.

Any thoughts on the overall impact for both teams?

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15 mph wins! FTW!

I’ll take the “win” with the 15 mph winds! ;-)

We're as good as we play each week, no better, no worse.
Follow @Tre9er

by Tre9er on Jan 17, 2012 12:03 PM PST reply actions

I think bad weather favors us. We're a trench warfare team.

We're as good as we play each week, no better, no worse.
Follow @Tre9er

by Tre9er on Jan 17, 2012 12:04 PM PST reply actions

of course...

The 49ers opened up the passing attack a bit last time against the Giants.

Follow @NinersNation

by David Fucillo on Jan 17, 2012 12:30 PM PST up reply actions

favor

Personally I think it favors the giants as they have healthier power back than we do. I would prefer a game in the sun with the pumped up crowd not a rain soaked rush battle with soaked fans.

by Jokersrwild on Jan 17, 2012 12:55 PM PST via iPhone app up reply actions

Rain or sunshine

The ’Stick will be rocking.

"One game at a time. Let's just keep it rolling." Justin Smith

by riderless on Jan 17, 2012 1:19 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs

Yes!! I like this!!

Let's giggity giggity Go 49ers!!!

by Kittles on Jan 17, 2012 2:13 PM PST via Android app up reply actions

The weather should affect both teams equally.

I’m not sure I understand why it would affect one team more than the other. Are we forgetting that Alex Smith throws passes too? Whatever weather affects Eli will affect Alex Smith and vice versa, IMO.

Let's giggity giggity Go 49ers!!!

by Kittles on Jan 17, 2012 2:16 PM PST via Android app up reply actions

Manning's arm strength vs. Smith's

I would be worried that the wind would affect Alex more than Eli because Eli can put a little more power into his throws than Alex

by 49er Cappy on Jan 17, 2012 2:27 PM PST up reply actions

Uhh

Did you see that last pass to Vernon?

"One game at a time. Let's just keep it rolling." Justin Smith

by riderless on Jan 17, 2012 2:58 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs

The Giants offense generally relies on the pass much more so than the 49ers. If they’re forced to go to the ground game, this plays into the strength of our defense, which has been amazing against the run this season.

That said, I’d probably still prefer 65 and sunny. Wild weather makes for fluky plays—which do affect both teams equally—and I like our odds better in a straight up, fluke-free contest

by tedler on Jan 17, 2012 2:58 PM PST up reply actions

I agree with the fluky thing

The Niners have been the best at the turnover ratio this year because of the way they play, and it has helped them win a lot of games, but wild weather like predicted could lead to unusual fumbles and int’s

by sanfranfanmdk on Jan 17, 2012 3:22 PM PST up reply actions

Yepp, I think thats probably the biggest single effect it has

Under controlled conditions, the team that “should” win, does so more often, whoever you think that is. Rain brings it closer to a coin flip. The other significant factor I can think of is it makes pass rushing more difficult, as d-linemen have a much harder time getting off the snap in muck. I’m not sure who that helps though, since the pass rush is important to both teams. I’ve heard the niners o-line is much better at home, in which case worse pass rushing conditions could even that out and help the giants. Predictions are pretty much useless though lol.

Go Giants!
Arguing on the internet is like running in the Special Olympics. Even if you win, you're still retarded.

by rich316 on Jan 17, 2012 9:27 PM PST up reply actions

I don't know...I know we're all homers buttt

The crowd at the ’stick comes off as soft sometimes…you want to see a fan-base go to a game in Buffalo or Green Bay

"Alex Smith has fought through the chaos of SEVEN different O.C.'s...I had trouble with one" -Terry Bradshaw

...and then Singletary opened His Book and it said "thou shalt NOT pass"

by jimisoursavior on Jan 17, 2012 2:17 PM PST up reply actions

Candlestick was far louder than Lambeau this past weekend

Even before the GB game got out of hand.

You gotta bring ass to get ass.
We dat team that beat them Saints!

by SpurredOn on Jan 17, 2012 2:30 PM PST up reply actions

No Doubt

by Stoney Montana on Jan 18, 2012 12:37 AM PST up reply actions

But we have the superior run defense

You gotta bring ass to get ass.
We dat team that beat them Saints!

by SpurredOn on Jan 17, 2012 2:29 PM PST up reply actions

Sounds about right for the 'stick this time of year...

so what’s everyone crying about?
My seats are covered. :)

by SH0ck-D on Jan 17, 2012 1:42 PM PST reply actions

2008 GIANTS

Played the eagles in the meadowland In the playoffs that day Eli had problems cause of the wind he was overthrowing like crazy all day

by Moflush on Jan 17, 2012 1:45 PM PST via mobile reply actions

What's more significant than the actual game time conditions

is that we are supposed to get 3-4 days of rain leading up to Sunday. This should have an effect on the typically sloppy Candlestick turf.

I’m not sure it really favors either team to be honest. I think they’re pretty evenly matched.

by AptosNinerFan on Jan 17, 2012 2:10 PM PST reply actions

Considering how important Andy Lee and David Akers are to us...

I don’t know how good this is for us

"Alex Smith has fought through the chaos of SEVEN different O.C.'s...I had trouble with one" -Terry Bradshaw

...and then Singletary opened His Book and it said "thou shalt NOT pass"

by jimisoursavior on Jan 17, 2012 2:15 PM PST reply actions

Good point...

very good point. I agree 100%.

Let's giggity giggity Go 49ers!!!

by Kittles on Jan 17, 2012 2:19 PM PST via Android app up reply actions

Excellent point

there

by 49er Cappy on Jan 17, 2012 2:28 PM PST up reply actions

Andy Lee is Andy Lee

no worries here

And when we win, we want to dominate. We want to take guys out. We want to hurt guys. We want to win. We just want to dominate, hit them in the mouth. - Rathman
Follow @manraj76

by manraj7 on Jan 17, 2012 2:31 PM PST up reply actions

The weather in Indy

Who cares ? we will be playing in a dome in Indy in a couple of weeks

by Andy Reno on Jan 17, 2012 2:21 PM PST reply actions

Days or rain will impact parking and traffic more than anything

But I do recall the one monsoon playoff game the Niners hosted, in the Wild Card after the ’96 season. Ugly day for two passing teams that resulted in a 14-0 win.

Rain won’t hurt passing but wind sure will. Also, how tough will FGs be?

You gotta bring ass to get ass.
We dat team that beat them Saints!

by SpurredOn on Jan 17, 2012 2:29 PM PST reply actions

Well I guess that helps the Niners because Akers it better

by sanfranfanmdk on Jan 17, 2012 3:23 PM PST up reply actions

Mud and Blood

I’ll take us

"It's impossible to hide the fire inside" - Bob Seger

by Jaxson876 on Jan 17, 2012 2:53 PM PST reply actions

How reliable are the forecasts usually for San Francisco and the stadium?

Usually, where I live, you can count on the snow/rain arriving a good 24-36 hours after it has been forecast, especially on weekends for some odd reason. The forecast also changes almost daily. Does it trend the same there? Could we expect the forecast to be changed/altered drastically before game time?

Let's giggity giggity Go 49ers!!!

by Kittles on Jan 17, 2012 3:15 PM PST reply actions

usually accurate from what I remember

And when we win, we want to dominate. We want to take guys out. We want to hurt guys. We want to win. We just want to dominate, hit them in the mouth. - Rathman
Follow @manraj76

by manraj7 on Jan 17, 2012 3:37 PM PST up reply actions

This storm looks pretty significant

We do have “micro-climates” in the bay area so some areas will see more rain/wind than others but I would say the chances of the forecasters whiffing on this entirely are pretty slim.

It hasn’t rained in over two months incidentally, which is very unusual.

by AptosNinerFan on Jan 17, 2012 3:43 PM PST up reply actions