Why The NFL Always Has One Unexpected Food On The Sidelines

Seeing coolers of Gatorade on the sidelines of NFL games is commonplace. In fact, the NFL recommends the sports drink for athletes at any level in order to replenish electrolytes. When discussing snacks to munch on during games, the league suggests eating fruits such as oranges or bananas or grabbing an energy bar or even pretzels as a light treat.

New York Jets quarterback, Mark Sanchez, made headlines in 2009 when he called an audible on his in-game snack. During a blowout win, Sanchez was filmed chowing down on a hot dog which raised eyebrows as some people believed the quarterback was being disrespectful. "I wasn't feeling very good and didn't eat much before the game, so I was feeling a little queasy," Sanchez explained, per the New York Post, while acknowledging that he should have opted for an energy bar instead.

NFL players wolfing down hot dogs in the middle of a game may not happen often, but players often opt for chicken broth as a nutritional snack. Former NFL player, Matt Bowen, explained that broth was a go-to drink when temperatures were low. "A cup of hot chocolate in the locker room and a cup of chicken broth while you get a break on the sideline, however, is a smart way to stay warm," he wrote for ESPN in 2017. The benefits of drinking broth extend beyond simply warming a person up.

Even before his historic NFL career, Joe Montana cemented his legacy in 1979 in what was dubbed the "Chicken Soup Game." Playing in the Cotton Bowl, Montana had chicken soup at halftime to help stave off hypothermia. Decades later, football teams often make chicken broth available to their players. The benefits of the liquid are twofold. "It tastes good, it's going to be warm and help warm them internally," former president of the NFL's Physician Society, Dr. Matthew J. Matava, told Reuters in 2014. "It contains electrolytes and the sodium chloride (salt) helps replenish electrolytes you lose in sweat."

Using chicken broth to help replenish players is not limited to only the pros, or only football players. Soccer Today described bone broth as "the ultimate recovery drink" while mentioning broth contains a litany of beneficial nutrients such as potassium, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, and amino acids. The Louisiana State University Tigers have turned to chicken broth when playing in inclement weather, but they used their own concoction.

According to head coach Brian Kelly, LSU used a broth created by a team doctor, as Kelly told the Daily Advertiser after a game in 2022. Apparently, they used the broth to help players suffering from the flu at the time. "I was really sick. So I had to keep myself going, keep myself warm," Tigers linebacker, Micah Baskerville, said. Chicken broth is not the only secret ingredient some NFL players have used to keep warm.

Although the practice of using broth at football games goes back decades, many fans were surprised to see the Louisiana State University Tigers have coolers with meal replacements on the sidelines. The team was roasted online when fans noticed the Tigers had broth available. "LSU needing oxygen and chicken broth on the sideline. like this isn't 1918 trench warfare you're playing a game in 40 degree weather," one Twitter user wrote in 2022.

The Indianapolis Colts garnered a similar reaction in 2015 when they played in the AFC Championship game. Cameras caught a cooler labeled "Ind. Colts Chicken Broth" and one fan joked on Twitter that — in place of Gatorade — the team would dump the broth on the coach if they won.

Former NFL player turned analyst, Booger McFarland, spoke about substituting chicken broth for Gatorade during the wintry games. McFarland revealed that he used a little something extra when the warm broth was not doing the trick. "Maybe a little whiskey. I'm not saying that everybody does it. I'm just telling you what I did to try to stay warm on the sidelines," the analyst said on "Monday Night Countdown" in 2022, via Awful Announcing.