Inhistoric.com

To most fans, the finest moment in the history of the Cincinnati Bengals came in the '81 AFC Championship Game, when the Bengals beat the San Diego Chargers 27-7 to advance to Super Bowl XVI. However the game would not be known for the Bengals' domination; it was the freezing temperature both teams endured that made the contest famous.

Negative-nine degree weather mixed with -35° winds created a wind chill of -59°. Though the temperature was slightly warmer than the famed "Ice Bowl" of 1967, the wind chill made it the coldest game in NFL history. It has since been labeled the "Freezer Bowl."

"When we drove to the stadium, the river was steaming because the water was so much warmer than the air," Chargers QB Dan Fouts said. "That was the first clue we were in trouble." Fouts would leave the field with icicles hanging off his beard, while other players left with frostbite on their ears.

The tundra climate gave the home Bengals an-almost unfair advantage. The Chargers were coming off a four-hour marathon in Miami, where they narrowly overcame the Dolphins in overtime. The 144° temperature adjustment was impossible to make, even for a San Diego team that had (at the time) the best offense in NFL history. Tight end Kellen Winslow, who said he was close to death following the Miami game, called the Cincinnati weather "inhumane."

Bengals coach Forrest Gregg, who played right tackle in the Ice Bowl, told his team, "It's going to be like going to the dentist. You don't want to do it, but you've got to do it. Don't think about how cold it is, how bad it is. You've got a job to do." With the Bengals victory, Gregg held the distinction of being on the winning side of the two coldest games ever.

The Cincinnati linemen attempted to psych out their opponents by running out onto the field in sleeveless jerseys. "When we went out sleeveless, I think that was a shock to them," offensive lineman Dave Lapham said. "They looked at us like we were mentally ill." What the fans in Riverfront Stadium didn't see was the thermal underwear and Vaseline that most of the linebackers wore under their uniforms.

Bengals receiver Cris Collinsworth later remarked, "You've never seen anything, until you've seen Anthony Muñoz and our offensive line trying to get into Hanes queen-sized pantyhose." Apparently even bravado takes a back seat to warmth.

Further reading:
Referee.com: Freezer Bowl