Ryan won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and remembers when Tom Brady wore a “tight surfer’s suit that was waterproof and kept all the sweat in” while others wore latex gloves under their game gloves, so their hands stayed warm. “You’ve got to find ways to block heat from coming out while also staying lightweight,” Ryan explained to The Washington Post.
However, there are some extreme temperatures in the northern parts of the country, such as Buffalo where the Divisional Playoff game will take place between the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs. During the previous round, the game between the Bills and the Steelers had to be postponed due to the weather conditions.
Ryan elaborated “That’s when the Vaseline comes in It’s really big for closing the pores and blocking the wind from cutting through you. [Team trainers] will have regular-sized Vaselines, and they’ll grab a big tongue depressor stick or whatever, lather that on with latex gloves, take a group of guys, and rub their arms down,” Ryan added “Or guys will just do it themselves.”
Vaseline is not the only brand that the players prefer, there is another one called Warm Skin that can protect the skin creating an “invisible blanket” that prevents from prevent irritation, wind burn and, frostbite according to the outlet has shipped the product to over 10 NFL teams.
NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy wrote in an email to The Washington Post. “If a player has Vaseline or any substance on his skin that is deemed slippery then he would be required to clean the substance off his body so it was no longer judged to be a violation.”
