October is typically when the weather starts to cool, but the San Francisco 49ers won’t have that luxury in their Week 5 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals. The 49ers went so far as to request to switch to white uniforms ahead of a day where temperatures are expected to peak at 100 degrees. The NFL denied their request, though they did allow the Niners to switch to white pants.
Will that game rank among the hottest in NFL history? Below is a look at the games with the highest official recorded kickoff temperatures of all time. Note that we’ll only be looking at games played outdoors, so while the Ravens and Raiders played in 101-degree heat to open the 2021 season, Allegiant Stadium’s roof was closed and thus does not make the list.
7) 98 Degrees
When: Sept. 14, 2003
Teams: Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals
Get familiar with Sun Devil Stadium. The Arizona Cardinals played their home games in Tempe from 1998-2005, which gave rise to most of the games on this list. Thankfully, State Farm Stadium and its retractable roof has spared the Cardinals and their visitors from playing in even more triple-digit weather.
This game was won by the Seahawks in a decisive 38-0 shutout, with Seattle receiver Darrell Jackson recording touchdowns of 55 and 66 yards. Josh McCown and Jeff Blake each threw two interceptions for the hapless Cardinals offense.
T-6) 100 Degrees
When: Sept. 10, 2000
Teams: Dallas Cowboys at Arizona Cardinals
Shockingly, this game was a nice cooldown for the Dallas Cowboys (more on that in a minute). The Cardinals won a 32-31 thriller, with Jake Plummer throwing the game-winning TD from 17 yards out to Frank Sanders with 1:54 remaining.
9/10/00 – With 4min left, @snakestakes (18-24, 243yds, 2TDs) 'Jake Time' guided the Cardinals on an 87yd drive that included a 63yrd pass to David Boston and ended w/a 17yd TD pass to Frank Sanders to defeat the Dallas Cowboys 32-31 in front of 66,009 at #ASU Sun Devil. #BirdGang pic.twitter.com/wOyGLjCE1w
— Arizona Sports History (@AZSportsHistory)
The loss spoiled a spectacular first Cowboys start for Randall Cunningham, who passed for three TDs and 243 yards on 24-34 passing. Cunningham took over for Troy Aikman, who would retire after the season due to concussion issues.
T-6) 100 Degrees
When: Sept. 12, 2002
Teams: San Diego Chargers at Arizona Cardinals
LaDainian Tomlinson powered the Chargers to a 23-15 win at Sun Devil Stadium, rushing 26 times for 91 yards and two TDs. The win was part of a hot start for San Diego in the team’s first season under Marty Schottenheimer. A year after going 5-11, the Chargers would start 4-0, capped by a win over the defending champion New England Patriots.
However, San Diego would limp to an 8-8 finish, becoming the 19th team in the Super Bowl era (at the time) to start 4-0 or better and miss the playoffs.
4) 101 Degrees
When: Sept. 21, 2003
Teams: Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals
A week after playing a 100-degree game vs the Seahawks, the Cardinals kicked it up a degree and upset the Green Bay Packers with a 20-13 win. Jeff Blake threw for 273 yards and had both a Pass and Rush TD, including the game-winning one-yard touchdown to fullback James Hodgins with 3:59 remaining.
Safety Dexter Jackson, who had just been named Super Bowl XXXVII MVP the prior season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, picked off Brett Favre on the Packers’ last-ditch drive to seal the win.
9/21/03 – W/a high of 107 and field temp over 120, and after back-to-back noncompetitive losses, Jeff Blake led a 68yd drive ending in a 1yd TD pass to FB James Hodgins with 3:59 left & Dexter Jackson picked off Brett Favre in the endzone as the Cardinals upset GB, 20-13. pic.twitter.com/jooS3BzEzl
— Arizona Sports History (@AZSportsHistory)
3) 103 Degrees
When: Sept. 23, 2001
Teams: Denver Broncos at Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals led 10-0 but saw Denver score 38 unanswered points en route to an eventual 38-17 win. Brian Griese threw 3 touchdowns, with two of them going to Rod Smith. Smith posted 14 receptions for 162 yards, which was a franchise record for catches in a game at the time (since eclipsed by Brandon Marshall).
This was the second game of the season for Denver but ended up being the Cardinals’ season-opener after the events of September 11, 2001.
2) 104 Degrees
When: Sept. 30, 2001
Teams: Atlanta Falcons at Arizona Cardinals
A week after their 103-degree scorcher, the Cardinals played an even hotter game against the Atlanta Falcons. Unfortunately for Arizona, the result was largely the same, with the Falcons rolling to a 34-14 win. Falcons quarterback Chris Chandler completed 20-28 passes for 286 yards and three touchdowns.
Of note, rookie first-overall pick Michael Vick was inactive for this game after recording his first career touchdown the prior week (a two-yard Rush TD against the Carolina Panthers).
What Is the Hottest Game in NFL History?
1) 109 Degrees
When: Sept. 3, 2000
Teams: Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
The hottest recorded kickoff temperature in NFL history came in the season-opener for the Dallas Cowboys at Texas Stadium. At 109 degrees, no game has approached this volcanic environment that represented the first game of the millennium for each team.
3 Days until #Eagles Football!
On this Day 9/3/2000: 24yrs ago
The Pickle Juice Game! #Eagles Crush the Cowboys 41-14#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/P38IwURb74— All About The Birds (@AATBirds)
The Eagles cruised to a 41-14 win behind a 201-yard rushing performance from Duce Staley. Troy Aikman began the game 0-5 with four sacks before getting knocked out of the game.
