As is the norm these days, there's little to talk about in the dead of the offseason. That said, I have seen quite a bit of differing opinions on whether we should stay domed or go open air or maybe go half and half.
Don't get me wrong. I love the Dome, it's one of the more exciting places I've ever been in my life, but I think, given the chance, an open air stadium would be more beneficial to both us, the fans, and the team.
Want to know why? Do that action verb that we liken to hopping a long distance and/or a great height!
I'll jump straight to the point....or points.1) Designed correctly, it could be louder than the Dome. This is absolutely the most important part. If we're going to have an open-air stadium, it had better be designed to be louder than Qwest Field, no questions asked.
2) Weather. Everyone loves some Georgia tornadoes/hurricanes/weather explosions in October. Think about it, everyone probably loves playing in the Dome. It could be blizzarding outside, but it'll be a comfy 72 degrees with no wind in the Dome.
3) Angrier fans. Who wants to go to a playoff game in January with the wind blowing and the temperature below 20? Angry, drunk Steelers fans (no particular association with being angry or drunk all the time.). Who wants to go to a playoff game in January in a comfortable 72 degree environment? Everyone. The opponents' fans, people there for the show, etc. Heck no. We need 65,000 angry people yelling their souls out. Are opponents' fans gonna want to fly all the way over here to watch their team play in a monsoon? Nope.
4) Aaron Rodgers totally exploited the Dome. He played like a possessed Tasmanian Devil, literally destroying everything in his wake. You know why? Because it was 72 degrees and comfy with a fast surface. If it had been blizzarding with 6,200 mph winds and hail, do you think Aaron Rodgers would've won? Nope.
I think Aaron Rodgers showed that we need to have a new stadium. What is terrifying about the Dome? They're used to the crowd noise, though having red on all sides might be a bit daunting. We need home field advantage to be home field advantage. Yeah, we play better in the Dome, but maybe that's just because they're cheering for us? If that's the only advantage we have, we could play anywhere so long as we had the fans for it.
We need a real advantage. You think anyone wants to play in Pittsburgh, Philly, Green Bay, or practically any AFC team north of us in January? Heck no, because it's going to be 1 degree outside with 42 feet of snow everywhere and fans throwing ice balls at all times. Plus, if we play outside, we'll be able to travel to NFC places like Seattle, Philly, Green Bay, etc. and be just fine.
What do you guys think? Would you rather have a new Dome or a shiny new open air stadium? Why or why not? Let's chat up some stadium ideas!