Peter King writes in Monday Morning Quarterback:
There was one thing I’d wanted to ask Dungy since the 20-3 divisional playoff loss at Foxboro in January: How did he feel about the Patriots choosing not to cover the Gillette Stadium turf during a sleety, rainy week leading up to the game? Was that, in his mind, home-field-advantage gone mad? The Patriots are more comfortable with a slow, plodding game. The Colts like the game on the carpet or on a fast surface. By not covering the field during the week and ensuring the game would be played in a bog, New England’s power running game and its suspect secondary would both have an edge over the Colts. And should the league take over field management during playoff weeks to ensure a quality pitch for both teams?
“No, I don’t see anything wrong with what they did,” he said. “To me, that’s what home-field advantage is all about. There aren’t any rules on the books about field management before a playoff game, so that’s part of the mystique of winning home-field in the playoffs. We’re not going to sit here and make excuses about the condition of the field.”
Noble. But if I were the Colts, I’d be putting forth a bylaw this week asking for the league to oversee field preparation for all playoff games.
Come on, Peter! I’m with Dungy on this one. Home field advantage is supposed to mean something, after all, and if the Patriots feel it’s in their interest to play in a swamp, then that’s their right. Unless the field is actually rendered unplayable, the league should leave well enough alone.
If you want to make sure that the field is to your liking, then maybe you should work to win home field advantage.
Based on his reasoning here, any guess as to which faction of the bicephalous ruling party Mr. King supports?