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Dome-field advantage Rams playing big game in familiar environmentPosted: Wednesday January 30, 2002 11:11 AMNEW ORLEANS (AP) -- There's no home-field advantage in this neutral-site Super Bowl. The dome advantage for the St. Louis Rams is another matter. New England defensive back Otis Smith, who's playing the Super Bowl in his hometown, says he'd prefer that St. Louis' speedy receivers run their intricate timing routes "outside, on grass, and in the cold." Two weeks ago, the Patriots relished the chance to play a January night game in the snow against the Oakland Raiders. On Sunday, there'll be no slick field, wind, precipitation or cold temperatures. It's the ideal setting for the Rams' offense. "When we play indoors, it allows us to do maybe a little more than we would when we play outside," said running back Marshall Faulk, a frequent receiver out of the backfield. The Rams play all their home games indoors on an artificial surface similar to that in the Louisiana Superdome. In addition, the Rams have played the New Orleans Saints here three times in the past two seasons -- winning two -- so St. Louis will be on familiar turf, minus the hostile crowd of their divisional rival. "Not only that, but without the loud music being pumped in seemingly whenever I'm in the huddle," quarterback Kurt Warner said. The Rams' Super Bowl victory two years ago in Atlanta also was in a dome and in the relatively familiar home field of a divisional foe. "It helps to be in a dome. This is what we're used to," Rams wide receiver Torry Holt said Tuesday. "It helps to be in a dome. This is what we're used to." In 11 games indoors this season, the Rams outscored their opponents by an average of 38-15. In five games outside, they outscored their opponents by an average of 29-21, including a 24-17 victory against the Patriots at Foxboro, Mass. "We're so used to playing indoors and on turf, to play the Super Bowl here just plays into what we're trying to do and is a definite benefit for us versus playing outside," Warner said. "I don't have to worry about throwing the ball any differently, guys don't have to worry about slipping and falling running their routes. ... We can play fast and I think that always bodes well for this team." Hope for the Patriots lies in the fact that while the Rams seem more comfortable indoors, their only two losses this season came in St. Louis.
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