FLACCO (UPI)
NEW ORLEANS — It’s a good thing Joe Flacco gets paid for his right arm and not his mouth.
The Ravens quarterback made his first bad pass of the week when he used a derogatory term to rip the idea of next year’s cold-weather Super Bowl at MetLife Stadium in his home state of New Jersey.
“I think it’s retarded,” Flacco said at yesterday’s press conference before catching himself. “I probably shouldn’t say that. I think it’s stupid. If you want a Super Bowl, put a retractable dome on your stadium. Then you can get one. Other than I don’t really like the idea. I don’t think people would react very well to it, or be glad to play anybody in that kind of weather.”
Flacco, a breakout star of this postseason, made his remarks at the Ravens’ first pre-Super Bowl media session last night. The team arrived yesterday. Flacco surely will draw a big crowd at today’s Media Day interview session at the Superdome and will be asked about his remarks.
The topic of next year’s Super Bowl being played outside has become a talking point after the Arctic temperatures experienced in our area over the last week. The temperatures in New Orleans this week are in the 60s and 70s.
The Jets and Giants are co-hosts for the first Super Bowl played outside in a cold climate.
Flacco grew up in Audubon, N.J., near Philadelphia, and is called “Jersey Joe” by some. He became “Traitor Joe” yesterday, though, by ripping the idea of his home state hosting a Super Bowl. Flacco always has played in the cold weather. He went to college at Pittsburgh and Delaware before getting drafted in 2008 by Baltimore.
Super Bowl XLVIII is scheduled for Feb. 2, 2014. It will be a test for the NFL to see whether other cold-weather cities get to host Super Bowls. Flacco’s quote was in response to a question from a reporter from Denver, a city that is planning on making a push for the Super Bowl.
Last week in New York, NFL commissioner Roger Goddell said he’s not worried about the cold temperatures next year.
“We made this decision obviously not knowing what the weather would be, but football is made to be played in the elements,” Goodell said. “We’re going to celebrate the game here. We’re going to celebrate the weather here. We’re going to make it a great experience.”